Burnt buddhist monks

My best friend was killed in front of me and took his last breath as I watched. He was crushed and mangled. The medic could do nothing. I thought the buddhist monks were crazy as I watched in 1965 at home in the U.S. I returned after remaining for five offensives and was proud of service to my country. The reasons and pride was not due to free thought. I was under an illusion about the united states as all are about the governments we live under. Democracies are weak and when I returned home things had changed. After 6 years of treatment at the veterans hospital. I began to seek a sincere path to help others because I had been living in Chicago USA and there was much violence on the streets. I began to intensify study with Kung Fu master 8th degree black belt in China and Korea. My background enabled me to win all matches except three of the top in area. My last match was with a man who was angry and called me a fucking white boy. I did not hurt him as I could have, That was my last fight- at 48. I met a boy with no legs scooting across the street and asked him why he was not in school. He said you need legs to go to school all of them have legs. No, you can go. He signed up. We got him a wheel chair. He won the National handicapped student award in California and received a scholarship. I can't drive a car with no legs, he said. There is a device that you drive and work pedals with your hands I said. He got a van and last I heard he was a lawyer in Chicago. He escaped from the Rouge in cambodia, they killed his entire family, all teachers, doctors, lawyers, they kill everybody he said. He escaped, they let me go, what could I do with no legs, they laughed at me he said. He did something positive and I wish that I had more sincerity then so that more could have been done for him at the time. Fear seems to be at the root of anger and rage that is driving the world today. I have had guns pulled on me at work, spit at, hit, kicked, and beat in the course of being a teacher of the behavior disordered for 24 years. I don't think that people really know with full consciousness what they are doing at times. I share your sorrow but never will completely understand your pain. Thitch Nhat Han, Jesus, And the Dali Lama have a good approach to dealing with this issue of forgiveness. Who's war it was may not be as important as creating peacefulness and closure to what was bacically a european banking investment that used pawns from many countries to bring about blame on the US and China. To keep us separated so to speak. When I was in Japan many times I was impressed with the people and culture. Hawians call americans Hollies because we are hollow spiritually they say. We must forgive oneanother simply because many timees we know not what we do and cannot see at times the end results. I believe that the monks that sacrificed themselves to bring attention to the war in southeast asia did so out of sincerity and love for us all. Perhaps this does not ring true with you. I have never told the complete story even to other veterans it would increase their sadness. I do not go to conventions, am not intereested with the movies about war. I will continue to help raise the level of consciousness of the students I teach and people I come into contact with through an example of kindness and peace that I have learned from the readings of the three men I have mentioned in the above portion of this letter. I hope and pray that you would be able to resolve and come to closure in this chapter of your life and meet the new day with compassion in order to have the enersy to interact sincerely with others no matter what race religion origin or category. Peace is the way, the way is peace now. You cannot have earth over heaven as I have had in the past. You cannot look for peace in earthly mental frameworks of good and bad, this is this because that happened. Peace is and exists because one puts down their thoughts that bring about violence in thought. This is due to the pair of opposites. Choosing good over bad, judging others. What can I do today to bring about peace in myself may be not getting someone to argue with me about what I beleive in could be a start. I mean you no harm and only thought that by my sharing part of this may bring you peace. Sincerity