Compassion in action.

That is what is being called for at the 2009 Peace Summit and WE Day held in Vancouver.

After listening to talk amongst some of today's thought leaders, the take-away was simple - peace starts within, with the individual and then can extend out into the world.  It's a very good message. It's a message every mom innately knows is true. It's something each of us as moms strive for. It's refreshing to hear it said out loud - an external echo as it were, of a great idea. 

But what does it look like in practical terms? What steps can we take toward achieving inner peace?

We sat down and tried to come up with something. This is as far as we got (obviously we haven't attained full bliss yet!):

1. Tell the harpy, critical voices inside our heads, 'thanks for sharing' and then ignore them
2. Deal only in truths (this is harder to do than it sounds, no wonder inner peace is so ellusive)
3. Cut yourself some slack (especially if you're struggling with #2)
4. Count to 90 seconds after feeling the first hit of a strong emotion - the time it takes for your body to process the bio-chemical reaction before it disappears
5. Have a piece of chocolate (we haven't any proof but we're sure it works like #4 in reverse - the chocolate triggers 90 seconds of inner bliss)
6. Take a nap

If you have some other suggestions for ways to 'do' inner peace, we would love to hear them.