Valuing peace

Weapons are the tools of violence;
all decent men detest them.

Weapons are the tools of fear;
a decent man will avoid them
except in the direst necessity
and, if compelled, will use them
only with the utmost restraint.
Peace is his highest value.
If the peace has been shattered,
how can he be content?
His enemies are not demons,
but human beings like himself.
He doesn’t wish them personal harm.
Nor does he rejoice in victory.
How could he rejoice in victory
and delight in the slaughter of men?

He enters a battle gravely,
with sorrow and with great compassion,
as if he were attending a funeral.

This is the thirty-first lesson of the Tao Te Ching. Besides shooting an assortment of NERF guns, I have never used a weapon before, so I can only imagine how I would feel if I had to use one. I have no use for violence, and I cannot imagine that stance changing in my lifetime. Sure, there are unique circumstances in which I might take a weapon in my hand, but it would be with the utmost restraint, like the Tao says.

I tell my students on a regular basis that I do not like anything that relates to real life violence, and in most cases, I don’t like fictional violence either. I see no benefit in pretending to seriously harm or kill someone else. Of course, if kids are pretending to be part of a Star Wars or Harry Potter scene on the playground, and their play causes no harm, then game on. I could do without all real-life depictions of war and graphic violence on video games, like the Call of Duty series, but if the game is like Mario Smash Brothers, where cartoon characters are throwing each other around, then I see no harm there. The former shows what could be a real-life scenario of murder, and the latter is a cartoon scenario that could never happen, and is meant to entertain only.

Violence has no part in my life, which makes me atypical compared to my male brethren all across the world. I like this difference, though, and I am proud of it.

Snapshot Series: No guns

I found this page in a scrapbook that my first grade teacher made for me. There are a few details that I’d like you to notice about this picture. First, look at that handwriting! Honestly, that handwriting looks neater than that of most of my fourth graders. Second, look at the gun in the picture. I drew a shotgun with an x marked across it. It seems that even as a seven year old I didn’t like the idea of big, harmful guns. Third, I want you to think about this being my dream at such a tender age. I could have written about having the Ninja Turtles come to my birthday party, starting for the U.S. national team in the World Cup, or being allowed to consume an entire chocolate cake for dinner. Instead, I wrote about a world without guns.

I am proud of first grade me.