PEACE. HOPE. LOVE.

Today I was asked a question so profound, it stopped me in my tracks.
What is your definition of Peace, Hope and Love?

The person asking was a wood craftsman in Jogjakarta, Indonesia.

I had commissioned Mr. Sukiya to make a heavily carved teak room divider for me. In the center of each screen I wanted something to remind me how far life had brought me. I wanted the words Peace, Hope and Love in Arabic atop the screens. My definition of the words would impact his artistic interpretation of the calligraphy. Until I gave him my definition, the area for the calligraphy would remain blank. “What do you mean?” was my first response. Peace. Hope. Love. That’s it.
Mr. Sukiya pressed in.
Did I mean Peace, as in a restful place?
Peace, as in the opposite of war?
Did I mean Peace, like something I feel?
Mr. Sukiya had to know.
I had some soul searching to do.
When I think of Peace I see the face of my African grandmother, Asampanah.

Asampanah. Age 96.

She survived extreme poverty for 100 years and yet smiled like this until the very moment she went to see our ancestors.
Spending time with Grandmother taught me, without a doubt, Peace is a choice. It is found in how we choose to react to our environment, the actions of others toward us, and our thoughts and actions toward others.

She was full of love. She accepted everyone as they were. She was at Peace with her life’s journey.
Her eyes, her smile. They are Peace.
I told Mr. Sukiya Peace, as in inner peace.
This is how he interpreted my Peace. Hope. “What Hope do you mean?” Mr. Sukiya wanted to know.
“Hope as in belief? Hope as in expectation? Hope as in desire? Which Hope?”
I dug further into my spirit.
When I think of Hope, I see the eyes of the children I spend time with throughout the world. No matter their condition, when you look into their eyes you see something which can only be described as Hope. I told Mr. Sukiya Hope, as in belief. Belief in a brighter future.

Here is how he interpreted my Hope.
The center and largest screen was reserved for Love.
I surprised myself with how easily I defined it. Love was Joe.
I can honestly say I never knew what Love was until I met this man. Joe was my neighbor. I met him during some of the darkest hours of my life. Anyone else would have run like hell. Not Joe. He leaned in. In the days, weeks, months and now years that followed, Joe continues to epitomize Love. He makes me feel desired. Safe. Equally yoked. Secure. Needed. Respected. Honored. In short, Joe makes me feel well-held.
His is a Love that envelopes my Peace and Hope. Joe wanted to be married in my grandmothers village of Nyariga. Located in the extreme North of Ghana, Nyariga is home to 7,000 people I have spent more than a decade of my life serving. Complete with traditional drummers, dowry and local dress, the village honored us with a wedding steeped in Ghanaian tradition.