Philosophically, I have always been a Quaker, even long before I knew anything about the “Religious Society of Friends.” It was an amazement to be able to worship within a community that articulated my long held beliefs. This great gift was received during my second marriage. Quakerism meant “acting as God’s hands in the world.” When I first became a Quaker attender, I was emotionally broken, unable to deal with the realities of war, famine and injustice. Difficult issues for anyone, to be sure, but I was certain it also had something to do with the unhealed trauma of my childhood. Now I wanted to revisit those issues, be able to deal with the painful, unfair aspects of life and hopefully make a positive difference. I wasn’t sure that anything I could do would be of benefit to anyone. But I kept hearing Ghandi’s words in my head, “You may think your actions are meaningless and that they won’t help, but that is no excuse, you must still act.”