NEWSLETTER MONTHLY UPDATE April

At the Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC) meeting last week, my eye was drawn to the jewelry display that included a design by Eleanor Wiley called the "Sacred Wheel of Peace." The wheel represents a place to begin to be at peace with one another. It resonates with the multicultural setting where I work as Clinical Director of Spiritual Care at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Washington. Since September 11 many staff and visitors to our Level I Trauma Center have spent time in my office which doubles as a meditation and prayer space. They find sacred texts and symbols representing many traditions, e.g. liturgical stoles, a Zen Buddhist gong, Hebrew Scriptures, Bibles in several languages, a cross from the Vatican and rosary beads in primary colors from Guatemala, a Native American rain stick, sage, Muslim prayer rugs and the

Koran, a Book of Mormon, prayer beads, etc. People
enter this space to use their
sacred texts and symbols
to find spiritual nourishment
that will sustain them in the
midst of crisis.

Eleanor's Sacred Wheel of
Peace now graces my space.
She describes the wheel as a
mandala of archetypal
symbols chosen to represent

all spiritual paths. She asks that when one uses this mandala for prayer that the joys and sorrows of all people be embraced. The symbols on the outer edge of the wheel represent rituals and differences. A convergence occurs like the spokes on the wheel, if you look deeply into your path or that of another. The quiet space of the hub allows us to be together in silence, honoring our differences. This wheel is a place to begin to be at peace with one another.

I personally have had much dissonance since September 11. I vacillate between a strange kind of survivor's guilt and a strong desire to distance from the chaos. I have never been comfortable with anger and certainly shrink from others rage. Revenge is often where rage catapults people and it frightens me. Perhaps I go to that which I do best when confronted by trauma and grief of any proportion. I listen and I pray. However, my fear and anger are just below the surface seeping into conversations with those whom I trust and feel safe.

At this time of the year when many faith traditions mark survival and hope for new life that will transcend the old ways, may we all find ways to be at peace in all areas of our life ... personally, professionally and globally as we work for justice.