Steps of Peace
Table Talk
Setting the Table
You are welcome here. Come just as you are, bringing whatever is on your heart today. Take a few moments and allow yourself to just be. Take a couple deep breaths, grab yourself a cup of coffee, light a candle, do something that brings you comfort. Allow yourself to be present in this moment.
Consider that love often begins as a decision to stay present.
If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
— Mother Teresa
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.
— Thich Nhat Hanh
Colossians 3:12–15
As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience… And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body.
Food for Thought
For the past few months, the country has been fascinated by a radical movement. On October 26, 2025, nineteen Buddhist monks from the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth, Texas began a 120-day pilgrimage, called the Walk for Peace, to Washington, D.C. Their purpose was simple and profound: to raise awareness for peace, loving kindness, and compassion across America and the world. Their route took them through several states, countless cities, and almost literally to my front door.
The day the Venerable Monks’ route brought them to my town, I bundled up and gathered with hundreds of others to witness what felt like a once-in-a-lifetime event. Their arrival time was uncertain, so people lined the street that morning in the freezing cold, prepared to wait for hours—and wait for hours we did. I stood with friends and strangers, including some who had driven from Utah and Wisconsin just for this moment, clutching flowers to give the monks as a small token of gratitude for their humility, discipline, and love.
When the monks finally arrived, I expected cheers and applause—something loud and celebratory. What I witnessed instead was far more moving: silence, broken only by the occasional “Sadhu,” or thank you, from bystanders. The reverence was unmistakable. It felt like we instinctively knew that love sometimes asks for quiet, not noise.
After the monks passed and made their way to a nearby church to eat and rest, the crowd slowly migrated to the back of the building, where their spiritual leader would eventually speak. Once again, we waited—this time as the cold turned into rain. Still, we stayed. We were determined not to miss a moment.
When the leader finally emerged, he spoke about peace, yes, but even more about mindfulness: staying present with our breath, loving and honoring our parents, and redirecting our attention away from the material things in our lives and toward the people in our lives. He invited us to imagine how the world might change if we greeted each day with a single intention: “Today is going to be my peaceful day.”
As soon as his words ended and the monks were invited out to distribute blessing cords, the energy shifted. The long hours of waiting had reached their limit. The crowd became overexcited, impatient, and restless. The leader had to return to the microphone, gently but firmly calming us when our volume refused to lower. “We’re getting too excited now,” he said. If we gave in to our impulse to push, yell, or grow unkind, then everything we had waited for—everything this day represented—would be for nothing.
I felt a deep mix of shame, frustration, and recognition. We are so desperate for peace that we will travel across states, stand for hours in bitter cold, endure icy rain, all to bear witness to it. And yet, we struggle to know what to do with peace once it is placed in our hands. Loving peace, it turns out, is easier than practicing it.
Eventually, the crowd settled. Flowers and blessing cords were exchanged. And then we went home, each of us carrying a choice. Will we heed the words we waited hours in the freezing rain to hear? Or will we slip back into the familiar patterns of greed, selfishness, anxiety, and fear?
Peace does not come naturally. Love, real love, doesn’t either. Both require attention, restraint, and daily commitment. We have to choose peace—and love—for ourselves before we can hope for them in our world.
The Walk for Peace of the Venerable Monks is a beautiful act of love. Their willingness to risk illness, exhaustion, misunderstanding, and adversity for the sake of peace is a powerful reminder that we are worth fighting for. This world is worth fighting for. May their example of peace, loving kindness, and compassion encourage us to declare, again and again, “This day is going to be my peaceful day.” Imagine how different the world might be.
Today, notice moments when you feel hurried or anxious. When you do, pause and choose—intentionally—not to rush. Let this small act be an expression of love for yourself and for those around you.
Find a string, ribbon, or bracelet and tie it on your wrist—or place it somewhere you will see it today. Let it serve as a simple, tangible reminder: I choose peace today.
For a printable version of today's reflection Click Here!
Blessing
God of peace beyond our understanding,
We confess how deeply we long for peace
and how quickly we lose our grip on it.
Teach us to receive peace as presence,
and to recognize love in gentleness and compassion.
In our aching world, make us people who practice peace
in ways that ripple outward through us, beyond us.
Amen.
A little Table Talk for your table...
What does “peace” feel like to you personally, and how does it show up (or not) in your daily life?
How do you see your personal choices around peace and love affecting your community or the world around you?
The monks modeled peace and loving kindness through their actions. How might you show love quietly or intentionally this week?
Try taking it to the Kids Table...
How do you know when you are feeling worried, rushed, or upset?
What does “peace” feel like in your body or in your heart?
How could you be a “helper” like the monks—sharing peace or kindness with others?
Meet This WEek’s Writer...
June Dare Bunce is a native North Carolinian and one of the founders of The Welcome Table. Outside of TWT, she’s been a professional actor since 2009 and has had the honor and pleasure of working as a drama instructor for organizations such as The Harlem Children’s Zone and the YMCA. When she’s not working on a script or at the office, you can either find her at the gym or on the yoga mat, walking around whatever town she’s living in at the moment, or working on the art of relaxing at home (it really is a skill).
To hear more from June throughout the week, follow along on our Instagram!