‘Peace House Community Journal’ Archives
What World Do You Live In?
Peace House Community by MARTI MALTBY I’m often struck by how wildly different people’s experiences (and, as a result, their worldviews) can be, even when they seem to have a lot in common. For instance, most of my friends avoid coffee after 4:00 p.m. because it ramps up their adrenaline and keeps them awake, but I often joke that, at Peace House Community, caffeine and sugar are actually sedatives. As long as we have a good supply of those items, our community members are content, but heaven help us if we run out and face an angry, jittery mob suffering withdrawal symptoms. That’s when you really see people run on adrenaline. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more aware of how difficult it can be to get out of your own world. If you are forced into a new situation or make a deliberate effort to expand your horizons, it can happen, but in general humans seem to be programmed to run off habit. We experience something, and generalize that experience to others. So [...]
Peace House Community: The Greatest Sacrifice
By MARTI MALTBY Never having been in the armed forces, I don’t have personal experience with the idea of leaving no one behind on the battlefield, even if rescuing them requires great personal risk. I understand it in concept, but I’ve never had to live it out. Only recently did I realize that I get to see others live it out every day that I come to Peace House Community. Many of our community members make decisions that confound anyone from a middle class background. They decline housing opportunities, or move into housing and then get kicked out for inviting all their friends from the street to stay with them. They get into fights with their best friends and the next day act like nothing happened. They buy, sell and barter items from each other in a system that often looks like a giant commune. Most confusing of all, they stick with friends who they know are dragging them down. I hear so many questions that start with “Why don’t they …”, as if people who have [...]
Peace Housing Community: Standing Still
By MARTI MALTBY I spent last week visiting my parents in Jasper, a small town in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. It was the first time since my 11 year old twins were born that I have been away from them for more than two days consecutively. It was also the first time in over 20 years that I spent time with my parents without other family around. My time with them reminded me of some of life’s simple truths. Marti with his parents, Margaret and Roger I visited them because my dad has been declining for several years, both physically and mentally. I wanted to see how he was doing for myself, and to let the rest of my family know what I saw. The experience was bittersweet, as I got to spend more quality time with my parents than I have in all of the last two decades, while at the same time realizing I will probably never get to have another good in person conversation with my dad. He will simply be too far gone by the time we get together again. One of the joys of the trip [...]
