Greetings from India!

Dear Friends for Peace,

I’m writing this post from the BIRDS Community Center in Naganur, Belgaum Province, in the region of Karnataka. Sarah and I are visiting this morning with this community’s open education center, which is sponsored by our host organization, BIRDS Unlimited, and a Japanese funding source that is teaming to help increase and improve education at 35 such community centers in this province of Belgaum.

It is such a blessing to know that the Gandhi Global Peace Association has your support and encouragement to reach across the world to make such connections. Thank you for being a part of this effort for creating a process of peace where it’s most needed.

A few words on our journey so far:

Our first leg of the trip was very eventful, and offered me personally a chance to practice non-attachment. Our first plane was cancelled, so rather than going thru Chicago and straight to Delhi, India, we went from the US to London, and then on to Delhi. But we had a long layover in London, so we hopped on a train and went into Paddington Station and headed out on a much-needed walk.

After some good walking we ended up in a pub for a Sunday morning of fish and chips, and use the facilities. While we each stood guard over our carry on bags, we turned our backs on my backpack, and some enterprising person reached over the railing and stole my pack!

I lost my long India shirts, my two dhotis, my round-lens glasses, my camera and memory stick and my books, among some other minor things. I felt in shock for the next hour or so, and then began practicing breathing and non-attachment, and thinking well of the person who obviously needed those things much more than I did.

But I was sad. Luckily, all my money, passport, etc was in my neck-wallet, so I could go on without worrying about being stranded financially.

Back on the last flight, we made it to Delhi without incident, but 10 hours later than we’d planned, thus missing our first stay at the Hostel we’ll be staying in later, set up by our friend and host, Mr. A.R. Patil. We connected a few hours later to our flight south to Bangalore, a city of a million or more people, and then met by Mr. Patil, we caught the overnight train to Gokak area.

Standing in the train station waiting for the sleeper train to arrive, several people approached us, curious that I looked similar to Gandhi, and we struck up some meaningful and interesting conversations and connections.

Overnight trains are the way to go! Travelling while sleeping is great, and the ‘leg room’ is so much better!!!

We got off the train in Ghataprabha Station, and were off on a 10 km ride thru incredibly rural areas, places in the US that wouldn’t have villages, but might host hunting lodges way out in the middle of nowhere. Beautiful, and with many very sparse homes with cattle, goats, and colorful clothing worn by the women, we traveled through this area and arrived in the BIRDS campus, a 110-acre area that hosts several organizations under the BIRDS umbrella.

Right away that afternoon, Sarah started in teaching the 5th Standard students, 10-12 years old, about Santa Fe, her school, and beginning some ideas about sustainable living. She was of course met with great curiousity by the students, her long blonde hair and blue eyes something that is seen rarely, if at all, by these children.

I met with the Bachelor and Masters of Social Work students for two hours that first afternoon, and had a lively discussion about the convergence of Gandhi’s programs and ideals with modern social work practice. I focused my talk specifically on how best for them to look at what they deeply care about, in their society, and how they can consider their own careers in context with such issues that pull on them. The students’ curiousity and commitment, and their desire and courage to step into challenge areas of poverty and need, is very apparent.

We ended the evening with a meditation and music night, with three musicians who are blind leading us in harmonium, tablas, and singing, and with one of the Hindi professors, Madam Barlaya, a Indian classical singer, leading us in beautiful singing. We ended the evening’s festivities with a meditation, and held hands, 60-70 strong, and sent wishes around the circle for love and goodwill in the community.

It’s been an eventful time already, and I will post to you all again as soon as I can.

With all love and blessings,

Don, along with Sarah’s good wishes for you

Off to India!

Dear Friends,

Sarah and I leave in a few minutes for our trip to India, with many adventures ahead of us.

Thank you for all your support in this endeavor over the years!

Stay tuned to the Facebook page for The Gandhi Global Peace Association thru the link below, and on www.1MahatmaGandhi.com.

Blessings.

Don

Setting Our Sights on India

Dear Friend,

What would you do if you were invited to go to India, to teach, lead workshops, and work toward peace?

How would want to ’show up’ far across the world? What would your preparation look like, what would you read, study, look up online, and fill your mind and heart with as you approached launching on this month-long journey?

I’m deep in it, my friend! I’m working hard to be ready, within my own heart and soul, and with my own preparations, to be able to be there as the most-preferred me I can be. Last year’s trip to the Internation Student Peace Festival was wonderful, and a physical ordeal, as I went from ten years of Santa Fe, New Mexico’s rather temperate climate to Chandigarh, India’s 95 degrees Fahrenheit, and 95% humidity.

It was hard. And, I loved it just the same.

I so look forward to meeting new friends, to the work ahead in teaching and discussing the application of Gandhi’s principles of non-violence, ahimsa, harmony, love and his ‘no-enemies’ inclusion, with the staff and students at the Shishu Panchayat School in Gokak, with the good people at Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram, the M.S. Pandawar Instititue for Mass Communication and Education, and of course again at this year’s International Student Peace Festival, again in Chandigarh, the last leg of my ‘Peace Tour 2010′.

My plan is to post to this blog as often as possible, daily if I can manage it. Last year it was hard to get to a computer, so we’ll see if taking my laptop will make a difference this year.

I want you to be with me, all along the way! I’m looking forward to your thoughts, your support, your encouragement, and your ideas on how you can bring these principles back into your life, your family, your community, your nation.

If we work at this ‘Process of Peace’ together, surely we will create it across our beautiful Globe, one person at a time.

In Peace and Great Love,

Don

A Passage to India: Counting down the days!

Well, Sarah and I are about to leave for India in a matter of a few weeks. We leave on September 4th for Delhi, and then for Gokak and teaching and learning from the staff and students at the Shishu Panchayat (Children’s Parliamant) School. Our host with be Mr. A. R. Patil, a wonderful man I met last fall while attending the Internationa Student Peace Festival in Chandigarh, India.

Here’s our itinerary as we know it now:

* Sept. 7-11, Teaching and learning with the school community.

        Evenings, I will be leading a meditation, music and discussion forum each night.

* Sept. 12-16: Travel around the Karnataka Region, visiting temples, communities, and sites of interest.

* Sept. 16-18: Arriving back in Delhi, a day of rest, and then Sarah leaves on the 18th for home.

* Sept. 18-22: Visit Mahatma Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram with Mr. Patil, studying and talking with the staff and visitors there on Gandhi’s principles and how to live them in today’s world.

* Sept. 22-27: Travel to Solon to visit the M.S. Pandawar Institute for Mass Communication and Education, with Mr. Patil. We will travel for two days by train to get there, then visit until the morning of the 27th.

* Sept. 27-Oct. 2nd: Attend the 5th Annual International Student Peace Festival in Chandigarh, north of Delhi about 250 miles. I will be leading three events: A large group facilitated discussion between the students from India and Pakistan on how best to establish peace between their two countries; a workshop on creating what I’ve come to call "A Process of Peace"; and another workshop titled, "Feminism as a Path Toward Peace".

    I will be connecting up with four wonderful students from the Peace Studies Program here in Albuquerque, New Mexico, who have raised the funds to come over and to be participants in the Peace Festival. They will be presenting on Border Issues of Peace, an important issue here in the American Southwest.

* Oct. 2nd-4th: The American students and I will travel to Delhi, and catch our flight back home on the 4th of October.

I will be recording much of this trip via photos, in order to create a photo documentary film of this ‘Gandhi Peace Tour 2010′.

My plan is also to post to this blog while I’m gone, so stay tuned and look to here and via our Facebook page.

Your support and encouragement is greatly appreciated!

In Peace,

Don

You can be part of The Gandhi Peace Tour 2010 starting Today!

 

Incredible Journey to India!

Sufice it to say, such a trip to India that Lexy and I are on is filled with challenges, changes in schedules, adventures, and wonderful, generous people. It has been non-stop since we got here, in 90-100 degree heat, with 100 % humidity, so incredibly styfling and incredibly powerful at the same time.

Mr. Parmod Sharma, chairman of Yuvsatta, the international youth peace organization putting on this conference, has had me and my co-hort, Mr. Bernie Meyer, the "American Gandhi’ moving at break-neck speed from one school to another, one event to another, all the while balancing out with Mr. Ajat Satru the needs of 250 young people, the workshops, personalities and desires of presenters, and of course, Indian food! A huge job, and one I admire both of these men and their team of volunteers for pulling off.

I have been received so warmly as the Second American Gandhi that it overwhelms me. Wondering what the Indian people would think of me showing up dressed as Mr. Gandhi, coming and talking with the children in schools, the youth in this Peace Festival, I’ve ended up feeling such gratitude for this experience so far. My apologies to those of you who were looking for more posts–just today we discovered computer access within the Commonwealth Youth Centre, where we are staying here in Chandigarh, but previously the only access was after the day’s festivities and events were completed, after 10pm, and such days as these I’ve had no energy to walk the 2.5 mile round trip to a internet cafe to write posts. Again, my apologies.

I will bring more news tomorrow, if all goes well. Lexy is bounding from groups of friends from Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India, and beyond. She is a big hit, with her effervescent energy and ready smile, her silly faces in pictures, and her beauty. She will probably end up with many international suitors, all of whom will have to wait till she’s 30, at least! Fifteen more years is a long time.

I send you greetings from India, these wonderful people, who are just the same as you and me, in so many ways.

More to tell tomorrow, if I can manage it again!

In True Peace,

Don and Lexy

First Dispatch from India–Peace Festival ‘Views’paper!

Greetings from Chandigarh, India!

After 30 + years of wanting to come to India, here I am, with my youngest delightful daughter Lexy, sending this post from a small internet cafe who charges 20 rupees per half hour of use–that’s about 50 cents, and our local guide felt he was possibly ripping us off at that price!

We went shopping for towels last night, shaving creme, deoderant, all the necessities, and our friend Ajat negotiated with the towel man, aghast he was charging 75 rupees per towel. A whole new experience in how prices get set and value gets determined.

The International Youth Peace Festival begins tomorrow, with 500 students attending and arriving here today. I have the distinct honor of giving the initial presentation, portraying the Mahatma, focusing on becoming worthy of peace, advocating Love as the central core of any work for justice and peace, and befriending people across cutlural, religious and national boundaries.

We have already had adventures galore, just in less than 24 hours here, with children riding on elephants, a wild and wooly 5 hour ride in a taxi out of Delhi and up 250 miles to this modern, architecturally designed city, ‘The Beautiful City’ they call it.

I already have lots of ideas, such as a youth-centered festival from the countries who have nuclear bombs, focusing on working in grassroots ways to disarm the planet from our own self-destructive tendencies. Can we do it, could we imagine, dream out, then actually make a nuclear-free world happen? President Obama says he feels it’s one of his key roles as President to do just that–care to join me in supporting that effort?

I’d love to raise my grandchildren in a world free of the terror of nuclear war.

I’ll post more tomorrow, after our first day of the festival.

With the most love I can imagine, and just a bit more,

Don

Gandhi Guy attends the International Youth Peace Festival in India

Wow, is all I can say.

Tomorrow my daughter Lexy and I leave for Chandigarh, India to attend the International Youth Peace Festival. Lexy turns 15 tomorrow too–very cool birthday present!

My intention is to provide a daily post to GandhiGuy.com, reporting out to you what we’re doing, how the Gandhi portrayals go, the workshops, the people and excitement of 500 young people from around the world gathering in India for peace! Awesome adventure, I’d say.

I’ll see if Lexy can post her views as well, and we’ll welcome your input and feedback, thoughts and insights as you post here too. Feel free to sign up and post, we’d love to hear from you!

Below is the schedule we were sent for the Festival, though many events not filled in as yet.

Peace to you and your loved ones, always,

Don and Lexy

 

GandhiGuy Goes to India–Join the Peace Train!

As many of you know, I’ve been portraying Mahatma Gandhi in what I call ‘Soul Theater’, as my contribution to peace in the world.

I always open these portrayals up for questions from the audience, staying in character in my answers. This is always a time of great exploration of the questioners thoughts and feelings about peace in their life, as they ask "Mr. Gandhi" what his thoughts are on their often very personal question.

I’ve met hundreds of people at my portrayals, and so many have expressed their deep appreciation for the gift they’ve received during this participative theater experience.

Now, you can be in on a tremendously exciting journey I’m about to take: I’ve been invited to portray Mahatma Gandhi at the International Youth Peace Conference in Chandigarh, India, September 25th through October 1st!

I don’t know if you can imagine what a thrilling, and in some ways terrifying opportunity this is for me! I’m scheduled to begin the Festival with my portrayal, re-enacting an evening prayer meeting at Gandhi’s ashram on the subject of peace. Then, over the next three days of the Festival, I’ll be leading workshops each day on "Becoming Worthy of Peace".

Finally, on the last day of the Festival, I’ve been asked to lead the 500+ young students from all over the world on a march in Chandigarh for nuclear disarmement in India!

I’d like you to be there with me! My wonderful daughter, Lexy, is coming with me on this incredible journey, and we’d like to invite you to come along as well!

Here’s our plan: Each day we’ll be posting to this website from India, keeping you up to date on our journey, introducing you to the young peace activists from all over the world that we’ll be meeting, and letting you in on each step of our walk for peace over the entire length of our trip.

Here’s all you have to do: Come back to GandhiGuy.com and post your thoughts in response to our blogging. You can become a member now, and as we journey for peace in September and October, you’ll be right there with us, each step of the way!

Between now and the Festival, I’ll be keeping you up to speed on our preparations for this powerful, life-changing trip, and sharing with you my thoughts, feelings, trepidations and excitements!

Come join us as ‘Gandhi’ returns to India, and be part of a historic journey for peace in our lifetime!

In Deepest Appreciation and Peace,

Don and Lexy

Be the Change You Wish to See in the World!

Mahatma Gandhi said, "We must be the change we wish to see in the world."

Let’s talk about that for a moment, shall we?

What the heck did he mean by that? Here’s what I think he meant:

I think Gandhi meant that it’s not enough to want injustice to end, we must strive for justice in our own hearts and lives. For instance, any time we judge others, we are placing our own set of values and life circumstances on top of their’s and saying our’s are the correct version of life. That’s unjust of us.

If we want racism to end, living a life free of racism ourselves is the change we wish to see in the world. Can we have the courage to root out our own prejudices, unconscious biases, fears of those who seem different from us, and be open to learning just who that person is instead? That would be living this change we wish to see.

If we believe war and violence are only one, very poor option to any situation, and we want war to stop, then can we look at our own patterns and see where violence and hatred, fear and retaliation come into our personal practices? Can we have the courage to stay open to awaremess of possibilities, rather than locked into dogmatic reactions to others, to other religious groups, to those who look or seem different than us? Can we live a life of non-violence, and from that stand begin to see others as the same as me?

That’s the change we wish to see in the world. Or rather, that’s the change I  wish to see in the world. It takes us BECOMING peace for peace to exist. It takes us BECOMING love for love to exist. The embodiment of these qualities, these movements and themes is what Gandhi was talking about. It takes us Loving Our Enemies in order for love to prevail over hatred and fear. If we don’t become this kind of change, then we are just substituting another villain for those who we say need to change their ways. We’re just becoming what we say we want changed by doing so.

It’s not enough to want change, especially not enough for us to ask others to change, paint them as inherently evil, to make others our version of the villain. That’s just the same pattern repeating itself.

We must love like all of life depends on us doing so. Because it does.

That’s the change I wish to see in the world. That’s who I want to show up as: Love. Absolute Love. That’s what I wish to evoke toward my opponents in life, toward those officials I don’t agree with, toward those who would stand in the way of peace. I wish to show up as Love, and as loving as I can possibly be.

That’s the change I wish to see in the world, and what and who I wish to be.

Be the change you wish to see, starting right now. It’s easy–but not simple. It takes work and practice to be that kind of change.

But we can all do it, and all do it together. If you get stuck, email me at donmcavinchey@comcast.net, and I’ll give you a hand.

Out of love.

Namaste’.

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