The Walk Continues...
What one old man is learning about polarization, love and the American people.
Photo credit: Seattle Times
Elderhood
I’m preparing for one of those big birthdays. You know, the ones where it means you’ve entered a new decade. On one level, it’s just like any other birthday. On another, not so much. It’s a very big deal.
When you’re move to the phase of life where you feel you can clearly visualize the time when you won’t be on this planet, life takes on a new kind of urgency. Some at my age are glad to have retired, finding meaning through engaging in travel, grandchildren, and a general sense of leisure. Believe me, I like those things, too, and they have become a larger priority for me now in the past couple of years.
But with respect to my work in the world, why exactly would I stop now? Hell, I’m just getting good at it! The perspective that this elderhood conveys I’m finding stimulating, satisfying, and evoking a new level of peace. I’m really digging it.
So, from this perspective I want to reflect on the collective evolutionary phase I see us humans going through here in 2026. It has been triggered by the tumult the world has been going through, especially from my (limited) perspective in the United States. It’s been a rough 18 months.
And it surely isn’t over yet.
Despite the polarization, the division, the hatred, the vengeance, I find in me a new sense of hope. I suppose I should elaborate.
First, the Walk for Peace. I have written about this elsewhere, but not exactly from the perspective I’m wanting to occupy today. I wanted to explore a few hypotheses in my systemic facilitation cohort, so we setup a constellation. I selected a handful of reps - Polarized Politics, Our Cohort, the Walk for Peace, an Unattached Witness, Bad Bunny’s Superbowl halftime show, the Iranian People (the people, not the government), Love, and finally, Peace.
The constellation was “blind” to the representatives, so they did not know who/what they were representing at least until the field was setup. They determined on their own who/what they were drawn to represent with no (conscious) influence from me.
I can’t adequately convey just how things unfolded, but suffice it to say, it was beautiful, hopeful, and mind-blowing. What emerged as the central focus of all the reps was the energetic vibration of Love (though they didn’t know it was Love when this focus began. David Hawkins, a renowned psychiatrist, author and spiritual teacher, developed a 1000 point logarithmic scale to measure the truth or falsehood of any statement or phenomenon. On this logarithmic scale, the highest measure is 1000, measured for Christ & the Buddha. On that same scale, fear measured at 100, anger at 150, and mass consciousness somewhere under 200. Love, meanwhile, measured at 500, considerably more powerful than hate/anger.
This difference played out in the constellation. Only the reps didn’t know that at first. The Walk for Peace and the Bad Bunny performance both seemed to bring calm and unity to the space and were drawn to Love. The Iranian people were allied with a kind of transcendence and were a powerful force in the field. I wish I could share the video to give the full effect, but it’s a closed container and needs to be respected as such. By the end, Polarized Politics had considerably relaxed and was drawn to love.
The Journey
I believe the reason the Walk for Peace went from a small, local event in early December (and earlier), to a worldwide obsession is that it vibrated more or less at the level of Love. It was pure, unbiased. No politics were allowed, from either side. Even when some individuals tried to make it political, such moves slid off the Walk like burnt food sliding off a non-stick cooking pan.
Photo credit: Ft Worth Report
I saw the monks on 4 separate occasions in person, watched them pretty much every day when they streamed, and read countless posts and reactions. Obviously, I was obsessed! Supporting them in whatever way I could was an assignment given me by a healer I work with back in early December, so I started following them a while before most people knew about them.
I think my involvement ended up changing my life.
A few reflections from my journey:
Parents with their kids. Kids don’t typically get taken to protests, but many parents wanted their children to see the wholesomeness of these (truly) “holy men.” It was stunning. The kids loved it. The monks loved it. The parents felt it was a once in a lifetime experience. It was beautiful.
The mindset of the crowd. I have never seen crowds of people be so silent, so reverential, so innocent. I found it very moving. On one occasion in Richmond where I live, the leader, Pannakara, was speaking to a crowd of several thousand, when someone in the audience needed medical attention. Pannakara paused, had the crowd hold both their hands over their heart, and led a 3 minute silent meditation. Even crying babies seemed to stop their crying! Peace settled over, and Pannakara went on.
Changed the mood. Overall, I sensed the Walk for Peace changed the mood in the country (along with the beautiful people of Minnesota who have created a community of coherence, helping out their neighbors in an inspiring display of humanity, solidarity, and a vivid reminder that governments govern only with the consent of the governed. As Mark Twain said, “loyalty to my country, always; loyalty to my government, when it deserves it.”
Based on more esoteric research and practices I am engaged in, I have seen these things as a sign of an underlying dynamic. I believe there is a major shift in human consciousness happening at this time, and I suspect this year — the year of the fire horse — will provoke a breakthrough. I’ve already felt a strong shift in the field beginning around February 17 (lunar new year, eclipse, new moon) and beyond. I would invite you to be mindful of what you sense in the field at this time and how you can raise your own consciousness.
The Takeaways
Anger / hate vibrates at 150. Love vibrates at 500. Which one “conquers”?
Paradox: We must standup to injustice, but it won’t work to meet it with hate. We need to transcend. We need, actually, to love.
It’s not “when they go low, we go high.” It’s more like righteously standing in-between abusive bureaucrats and innocent people. Then welcoming former adversaries back into the big tent as they realize they have seen something that is wrong, even though just yesterday they were on the “other” side.
Most importantly, peace begins in the only place we have a chance of controlling: inside each of us.
This will be my peaceful day.
Love your enthusiasm for elderhood Michael and how you are relish your maturation in your work. Isnt this what life is about - not just leaving a legacy but living it!