Before I open discussion about war and why war happens, I would like to make an opening statement. As an Eastern European, growing up in Eastern Europe was not easy. If you are from Eastern Europe you know what this means. Though I did not grow up in neither Russia nor Ukraine, I am from a neighboring country I love with my heart and soul. Having been born and raised in Eastern Europe is an honor. If you are Eastern European, you belong to some of the world's most bright, hard working, resilient, innovative, and strong people on planet earth. We also tend to be very hard on ourselves, unfortunately, because we have seen, lived, and overcome poverty, corruption, injustice, basically hell, so many times in our human history. We have had it all, from monarchy, to communism, socialism, democracy, and every political shift under the sun. I have respect for both Russia and Ukraine, out of simply the respect I hold for Easter European history alone not to mention the cultural similarities I can very much associate with. Unfortunately, often times in human history it has been demonstrated that it is not the common man and woman who bring about havoc upon themselves but rather corrupt politics and policies which are often narrow and self-serving. I don't side with anyone but goodness and kindness, the opposite of evil, I want to make this very clear. I studied Russian in college and received a Minor in Russian simply out of my appreciation of the language and literary giants whose works I read, out of the high regard I have towards many of Russia's exceptional authors and artists. The Ukrainian folks I met in my life all have had a very cheerful disposition, immense love for life, and were very nice people. Regardless of where you are from, being an Eastern European is not an honor that comes easy, not at all, especially if you also happen to fall in the category of writer or artist. For example, some of the most profound poets and writers led difficult lives overcoming substantial trials and tribulations. Some of the best writers, our world has known, didn't have the nicest car or house, did not know a childhood in pink, instead have seen and lived quite a bit of turmoil; yet, they have been known for the most priceless possession life can ever grant anyone - a beautiful soul. So, if you are a poet or writer reading this, please don't be afraid to speak from the heart. Never lose this privilege, honor, and responsibility. Do it kindly, respectfully, but always write from the heart.
Why does war happen? Many of us ask ourselves this question. It is never because of the majority but rather a minority chasing a gain but what gain, for what purpose, and to whose benefit, this is where all evil is. There behind the façade of self-centered motives, we find answers. If war was something you bought, let's say, and you'd receive a receipt for it, you'd see in the list of items you need to pay for that the price of war includes the lack of respect towards human life, the fallacy of allowing emptiness in a place within the human heart where love should be towards our fellow men and women. Yes, one of my literary heroes and one of the best authors the world has known, Leo Tolstoy, said it well "Respect was invented to cover the empty place where love should be." If this doesn't touch a human's heart, I am not sure what ever will. My heart goes out to the Russian and Ukrainian men and women who try so hard to simply lead a good life yet whose very life is shattered because of something many don't want but don't have a so called choice about. To think that a moral consciousness doesn't encourage us into unity because we allow it to fade away from us, making room for immoral things, this is indeed human tragedy. We can only change the world for the better with love. Why cannot we learn this simple and most valuable lesson history has tried so hard to teach us? Well, let's look at what Tolstoy has to say about a few things. Mindful of the tragic event currently occurring in our world, my heart goes out to all the families which are affected by this most recent, tragic event. I sit on pins and needles, thinking of my own family members who live nearby this tragic war who could be impacted every day, praying nothing bad comes to happen to them. I know I am not alone in this.
Would we actually take a deeper look into things, we would agree with Leo Tolstoy on the above words. You cannot play politely with the lives of others; that is not a right any human being possesses, if not out of moral conscious conduct then simply out of respect for personal liberty which we should honor for those who never caused any intended harm onto another. We cannot pretend that war is not vile when it separates families, destroys the livelihood, threatens the very peace, and ultimately brings about distress in so many different shades in the lives of so very many, too many. It's interesting that the timing of all this occurs just when we are all trying to march out and past a global health crisis known as Covid-19, as if that wasn't enough stress inducing turmoil for men and women of our century. This is not a game between who is bigger or better, who owns what and where. This is a test of the human spirit and strength of moral consciousness which should lead us into better judgment. Why cannot we learn this simple and most valuable lesson history has tried so hard to teach us? The current situation in Ukraine is horrific. Who would think that in the 21st century we still see wars of this magnitude being fought, when so many of us (me included) fight for a better life. I feel deeply for every Ukrainian man and woman now in Ukraine, fighting out of their love for their own land. Their bravery and outstanding will power are and will remain forever a beacon of light in the world so dark they did not welcome but had no choice but to face. This is a tragic event that should never have happened.
We all should learn to contribute to making the world a better place. This is not a job just a few should carry, on their shoulder, but all of us. If we want to live with love and peace in our soul, we have to begin living this way. If you want goodness, in your life as well in the lives of others, you need to begin to consider your options in more profound ways and not live always on the surface seeking your best interest always. Life cannot be just about us or our personal interests. Politicians need to learn where boundaries are and not harm entire populations because of their selfish interest in political power. Ego cannot come first; ego is a very dangerous trap. Doing the right thing, acting humanely, and not giving into extremes should come first; this is righteousness, living with a conscious mind. If you look around you, we all suffer from something, we all hurt because of something, and we all have some sort of struggle(s). We have enough to deal with already in life. We need to unify our efforts into not going against each other but finding ways to get along and if we decide we cannot get along, at the bare minimum, we should show respect towards each other because every one of us is battling with something today, if it's not Covid, cancer, it's something else. Why cannot we learn this simple and most valuable lesson history has tried so hard to teach us?
Lastly, in the words of Leo Tolstoy, there simply is no greatness where simplicity, goodness, and truth do not prevail. When we can think simply and speak the truth, we will find more meaning in life. But when we do so with goodness in mind, we will find more inner peace and joy and become better people, naturally so. I cannot say it more profoundly than he did. He was, after all, one very bright man. And even though I don't agree with every single one of the things Tolstoy ever said, his way of life was very noble in so many ways. His nobility was in his humbleness and kindness. That is where true nobility is rooted. Tolstoy's last book which I am now reading called A Calendar of Wisdom is very beautiful. Once again, I don't agree with absolutely every viewpoint in the book though I agree with many of them. I also admire his nature and ultimately his good intentions that were so pure. He was a student of life and tried to love everyone. Did you know that during the Soviet regime, you couldn't buy his book? Yes, that is correct. And he was a Russian with his own country's politicians against him. Because he was against war, loved God and humanity, his own politicians banned his works. Yet he spent years of his life writing it for the world, years of unceasing study, meditation, and search for wisdom. I admire his courage, wisdom, and overall love of life and for humanity.
Why cannot we learn this simple and most valuable lesson history has tried so hard to teach us, that simply living with goodness and truth in our hearts is the best way to live? WHY? Because inner selfishness trumps righteousness via corruption and when we choose to live inside this immoral thundercloud we deprive our very minds of consciousness by clouding our heart with crude selfishness.
War is an evil that brings about calamity. It is a crime against our most elemental freedom, life.
Carmen A. Cisnadean
If We Could Only Reason (XXVII)
poem by
Carmen A. Cisnadean
This isn’t an indignant spiel of words
But just a woman’s honest thoughts,
You aren’t, in any way, indebted to me
As neither am I to you,
So if you choose to read it’s at your leisure
For how time is spent, is a man’s personal and free decision
As are the writer’s words that stream from behind inner doors
That aren’t locked, as that would mean no freedom,
But I must warn you to cautiously step forward
Before you continue on and turn the knob to enter, I stress,
The nature of this writing is neither sweet nor simple.
No mastered elocution or wordsmithery
Can embellish war to make it a pleasant landscape
There’s no denying it that even when it seems
A last resort that appears unavoidable and just
It carries so much burden for the human heart,
Devastating consequences which emanate
From both the righteous and the wicked
Who fight for power more than for pleasant treaty,
Both sides doomed by an evil that does more so than cripple
Because we aren’t wise enough, not willing either,
To find a way and coexist, to simply get along.
If we cocoon our minds
And hide inside the chrysalis of lifeless ignorance,
If we cloak our faces
And shield behind the cloth of heartless indifference,
It doesn’t change the fact
That war is undesirable calamity that shatters
Not only the well-fortified defenses of strategic plans
But lives of sons and daughters
Despite that it seems undisputedly justifiable
To kill ten men in order to save a million,
I loathe the sick unwillingness to choose love over violence.
Nothing can bend the inescapable truth that war is vile
Despite at times being well reasoned,
Nobody can mold it into a lovely tale
One cannot fake it into something that it isn’t,
The hardship which can rupture the peace that we hold dear
If truth and goodness can’t prevail, there is but only hell,
In which case, we have no one else to blame
But our highly evolved, fellow homo sapiens
Humanity’s apathetic unconsciousness that fails
And tears apart the hopes and dreams of our children’s children,
If we could only reason…
"If We Could Only Reason" is my poem nr. 27th found in my book A Poetess' First Flight on page # 31. Should you be interested in my book, check out my website's page named Her Books where I provide more details or simply search for it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
Written With Love For All of Us, Me Included
Carmen A. Cisnadean
Author, Writer, Artist
The Creative Visionary