My NBF, PEACE PILGRIM, is Now My BFF

I graduated from a small Syracuse, NY Jesuit school, LeMoyne College in 1976. We were required, at that time, to minor in both Religion and Philosophy. I am SO THANKFUL for that!! Here I was an 18 year old girl from Small Town USA, reading the likes of Sartre, Rousseau, Nietzsche; I fell in love with Philosophy.

I continued my affairs with the "thinkers" of this world, and over the last 35 years, have sought out, and read, even the most obscure musings of those, who like me, were trying to make sense out of a seemingly meaningless and absurd world.

I mention all of this because I was floored when I discovered someone I had never heard of: Peace Pilgrim. I stumbled (with God's guidance I am positive) upon her website when I was researching the topic of "PEACE" for tonight's Pray it Off meeting. You see, I firmly believe that for many of us, we overeat because we are not at peace in our mind, our spirits or our bodies.

What Pray It Off offers, that most Weight Loss Programs don't, is we go to the source to try to solve our addictive behaviors. It's not just what we eat, it's why we overeat!

Peace Pilgrim, long gone from this world, is helping me to examine the source of my thinking. I want to share her with you. Here is a mini-bio from her site:

"From 1953 to 1981 a silver haired woman, Mildred Lisette Norman Ryder, calling herself only "Peace Pilgrim" walked more than 25,000 miles on a personal pilgrimage for peace. At the age of 44, after a spiritual journey of 15 years in which she transformed herself completely, she embarked on her "calling" to be a pilgrim for peace. She vowed to "remain a wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until given shelter and fasting until given food." In the course of her 28 year pilgrimage she touched the hearts, minds, and lives of thousands of individuals all across North America. Her message was both simple and profound. It continues to inspire people all over the world."

Since that fortuitous stumble, a few days ago, I have read anything I could get my hands on about her. If you go to her website - www.peacepilgrim.com - you can even download a free booklet. I carry mine in my purse now. Her thoughts are AMAZING. Some examples:

1. "There is a criterion by which you can judge whether the thoughts you are thinking and the things you are doing are right for you. That criterion is, have they brought you inner peace? If they have not, there is something wrong with them - so keep trying."

2. "The spiritual life is the real life - all else is illusion and deception. Only those who are attached to God alone are truly free."

3. "Sometimes difficulties of the body come to show that the body is just a transient garment - that the reality is the indestructible essence which activates the body."

4. "All difficulties in your life have a purpose. They are pushing you toward harmony with God's will."

5. "You cannot change anyone except yourself. After you have become an example, you can inspire others to change themselves."

I could go on and on. I will have more of her thoughts and quotes in my Blog tomorrow, when I upload tonight's meeting. I strongly encourage you to check out her website.

Do you want to know why Peace Pilgrim is my new best friend? It's because she showed me that a "nobody" just like me can, by changing herself, help others change themselves. Because of that she is now, not just a role model, but my best friend forever.

Photos: http://www.peacepilgrim.com/