Who am I to judge?
Deciding what others should or shouldn’t do?
I am no God or ruler.
Today I will begin the process of letting go of judgment.
For I too have fallen short.
I will allow love to fill the space where judgment once was.
To work to understand those I disagree with.
To understand that people change in their own time.
First I will begin the journey of letting go of self judgment.
Non judgment day has arrived.
Through the darkness, we shall rise
Rise like the sun
Bringing light into the darkness
For we are all holy men & women
Lost in the sea of fear
We have forgotten our true nature
Of compassion & love
We are disoriented by distraction
Haunted by our past
Paralyzed by the path unknown ahead of us
We cling to material wealth & status
Fearful to take risks for the true life we desire
So how do we begin this journey?
Don’t worry
The answer lies within you
Good luck
When we seek to understand
Compassion grows
Where there is compassion
Love begins
Where there is love
Peace is possible
Where there is peace
Joy is found
At this beautiful moment
Transformation can occur
I woke up today
With a clear purpose
To show compassion to all beings
To help others suffer less
To bring joy to others
How will I live my purpose?
By practicing compassion
Love & peace
To shed light into the darkness
To live out my message
Violence on the streets of Syria
Mass suffering in Yemen
Chaos in Afghanistan
Is peace possible?
Or are we doomed?
I have faith that everything will work out the way it’s suppose to be
All you & I can do is
Focus on becoming peace
To spread it far & wide
To understand
To show compassion
To live our message of peace
How will the world be at peace
If we are at war?
One breath at a time
One step at a time
I ascend up a steep mountain
A forest so lush it blocks the sun
As I reach the summit
A sudden storm appears above
Rain & wind torment me to no end
I start to run as fast as I can
Anything to escape this dangerous storm
A dark creature appears from the darkest depths of the forest
What do you want? I shout
It doesn’t answer me
I begin to move towards the creature
Fear filling every ounce of my soul
The creature runs away as I chase it
I hear its painful screams echoing within the forest
I finally catch this creature
What…. I can’t believe what I’m seeing
The creature is the darkest part of me
He was banished to the depths of the darkest forests
Suppressed, ridiculed, & beaten the creature laid wounded on the ground
Sobbing uncontrollably
I extend my arm to him
Picking up the creature I was astonished by how frail & weak it had become from my neglect
Yet so powerful to cause such powerful storms
I carried the creature back to my home, letting him rest and repair from all of the abuse
Thank you, said the creature as it gained consciousness once more
Anytime, I replied.
I’m so sorry that I banished you to the dark forest
You are part of me & always will be
I promise to shed light into the darkest part of the forest
Fear bubbles underneath the volcanoes surface.
Pain filled smoke seeping to the surface.
Anger, hatred, & rage boiling inside.
Until one day,
A vicious explosion destroys all in it’s path.
Leaving only pain & suffering to all.
Innocence lost in a moment.
How could this happen?
Will there ever be peace?
Fear, anger, hatred, & rage live within all of us.
Simmering under the surface.
Compassion leads us to love & understanding.
Love & understand can tame the simmering flames within us.
Peace begins & ends with us.
This poem is in response to the Christchurch mosque shooting on 15 March 2019. RIP to all who lost their lives and condolences to all who were touched.
Inspired by the late Chester Bennington & the band Linkin Park’s song “One More Light”.
I wake today,
Fueled not by apathy,
But compassion.
For the 150 billion of animals slaughtered each year.
For the million of children who die from disease and famine.
For those who commit suicide & those who suffer silently each day.
I vow to live a life that reduces the amount of suffering I cause in this world.
To speak for those who have no voice.
Who cares if one more light goes out in the sky of billions stars?
I do.
All life is precious.
The ego whispers “you’re right”. Unchecked, our ego will lead us into hatred of anyone who different than us. Hatred cannot be stopped by more hatred. It’s a vicious unstoppable circle of ego, fear, and hatred. Without the light of peace, the circle is infinite. Apathy & fear fuel the ego. I believe compassion and love can bring humanity true peace. Does humanity really want peace though? That’s a million dollar question. If we truly want peace we have to be mindful of the ego and its tendency to label everything as “right” or “wrong”. Labeling is the first step to hatred and violence. Labeling isn’t always bad (foods, streets, colors, etc) but when we label our fellow humans we put them in boxes; which we then label “right” or “wrong”. This distorts reality and makes peace difficult.
Understanding is the first step towards peace.
Without understanding peace is not possible. This is why mindful listening is so important in peace talks. Understanding the suffering inside another is a skill we can develop with compassion. Understanding, compassion, and peace are intertwined at their core.
Do we truly want peace or to be right?
I see this in my fellow animal right’s activists. Well-intentioned people who let their ego blind them. They care more about being right than understanding meat eaters. They end up pushing their meat-eating brothers & sisters further from plant-based living; causing more violence in the world. We all have been guilty of letting our ego take control of a conversation. I intend to show true compassion to all living beings, even those who believe the exact opposite of me. How will they know peace if we don’t show them? MLK, Gandhi, Jesus, Buddha, and Mother Theresa all preached this message of peace.
Let’s start today by mindfully listening to others instead of allowing our ego to lead into hatred. If we truly want peace in this world we must live peacefully with all living beings. By living this way, we leave the world a better place than we arrived.
With Aloha,
Johnny Hoffman
Where there is hatred, I will show love.
Where there is fear, I will show trust.
Where there is doubt, I will show faith.
Where there is apathy, I will show compassion.
Where there is violence, I will show peace.
I vow to show others another way.
The Narrow Path 