Sunday, August 8, 2010

Peace Offering

"Simple Sunday" Journal prompt ~ Peace Offering
Why hello, yes it has been too long~ So I am giving you a peace offering of sorts. I originally took this image because we had been picking strawberries from our small summer garden. Sammie with her cute swim suit, hot pink sandals and holding the strawberries~ it was the colors and summer feeling that made me want to capture the moment. But what I realized when I went to altering the image was that I was drawn to a more deeper meaning, seeing her hands reached out and the peace signs on her swim suit; it just rang "Peace Offering."

With all my heart I wanted to find the deeper meaning of those words. By definition I found 1. something given to an adversary in the hope of procuring or maintaining peace 2. (Non-Christian Religions / Judaism) Judaism a sacrificial meal shared between the offerer and Jehovah to intensify the union between them.

In Buddhist Culture making offerings is a very common practice. Every offering has a specific meaning, for example offering light is to dispel the darkness of one's ignorance, or offering incense to increase one's ethical behavior. Offering is considered a good training against greed and attachment. In Jewish culture their is a peace offering for Shavuot.

I could go on and on because what I found out was those two words"Peace Offering" have been used in many contexts for centuries and the references in history vast. So I give you these two words as your journal prompt for this week to search out the meaning and how it relates to you by your religious beliefs or otherwise. Journal a time when you made a peace offering and why~ Create a work of art, journal page or writing that speaks to those two words.
"Eternal Inner Peace has to be cultivated daily." ~Delphine-Gay de Girardin