On her 63rd birthday, author and peace storyteller Avis Kalfsbeek takes a break between creative seasons to reflect on what peace really means—on Earth, in words, and in action. In this intimate episode, she reads Mark Twain’s The War Prayer, a searing and ironic satire written during America’s imperial turn but withheld during Twain’s lifetime for fear it would be “not publishable.” Twain was Vice President of the Anti-Imperialist League (1901), opposing U.S. intervention in the Philippines. His peace work was fierce, critical, and clear-eyed.

“O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells… help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire… We ask it, in the spirit of love, of Him who is the source of Love…” Excerpt from Mark Twain's The War Prayer

Alongside the reading, Avis shares a personal “knowing” about peace, a birthday poem, and a call to stop the killing of just about everything for profit. If you’ve ever wrestled with whether peace is possible—or wondered how satire can hold a spiritual truth—this is a quiet, powerful episode to return to.

Musical credits: “Una Mañana” by Javier “Peke” Rodriguez (full track featured at the end)

Links to Peke’s music are in the show notes.

The Great Disarmament is coming soon. Until then—peace is already here.

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Get Mark Twain’s A War Prayer in the book “Europe and Other Things” available for free on Gutenberg Press: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/68604

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🎵 Music: Dalai Lama Riding a Bike by Javier “Peke” Rodriguez

🎧 Bandcamp → javierpekerodriguez.bandcamp.com

🎧 Spotify → Listen here