16 May INTERNATIONAL DAY OF LIVING IN PEACE
Every year on May 16th, the world celebrates the International Day of Living Together in Peace and urges people to live in a united and peaceful way by listening to, respecting, and appreciating others.
We live in a diverse world where people with different personalities are forced to co-exist in a shared space. Black, white, rich, poor, violent, reserved, extroverted, introverted, young, old, intelligent, slow, male, or female all are expected to peacefully co-exist in one world. Peace can be elusive if not intentionally sought for because many people feel threatened by those who are different than them. While it seems like our nation and the world are more polarized than ever, the universe has a long history of racism, prejudice, and war.
Living together in peace is all about accepting differences and having the ability to listen to, recognize, respect, and appreciate others, as well as living in a peaceful and united way, having tolerance, inclusion, understanding, and solidarity. A peaceful world is united in differences and diversity, in order to build a sustainable world of peace, solidarity, and harmony.
The Day invites countries to further promote reconciliation to help to ensure peace and sustainable development, including by working with communities, faith leaders, and other relevant actors, through reconciliatory measures and acts of service, and by encouraging forgiveness and compassion among individuals. Reconciliation can also be attained when individuals find peace within themselves and with others.
How to live peacefully with other people:
Seek to love others instead of trying to control them.
Practice tolerance for others by appreciating their diversity and the choices they make.
Walk away when you are angry or are trying to win over a conversation.
Don’t compare yourself to other people.
Accept other people the way they are instead of trying to change them.
Imagine what a peaceful world we would live in if everyone put all of these tips into practice.
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