The Mindset to Plan for Peace but Prepare for War explores the mental framework required to live wisely in an age of rising instability, global tension, and accelerating change. Rather than promoting fear, this book offers a balanced philosophy that helps readers cultivate clarity, emotional steadiness, and practical readiness. It presents a grounded approach to understanding conflict, the psychology of danger, and the everyday habits that build resilience long before a crisis begins.

Drawing on history, human behavior, and real-world patterns of war and peace, the book examines how societies overlook early warning sign, and how individuals can avoid the same fate. Readers learn to recognize shifts in geopolitics, safeguard their families, strengthen communities, and maintain inner calm even when the world feels turbulent. Through reflective guidance, strategic thinking tools, and relatable examples, the book teaches how to prepare intelligently without surrendering hope or losing sight of the world we want to protect.

At its core, this is a book about meaning, responsibility, and moral clarity in uncertain times. It offers a blueprint for thoughtful readiness—one rooted not in fear, but in wisdom, stewardship, and peace-centered living. For anyone seeking to understand global risks, develop a stronger mindset, and navigate the future with confidence, The Mindset to Plan for Peace but Prepare for War provides a powerful guide to living with purpose in a fragile world.

Why another book on war? Why one that does not focus on strategy, politics, or weapons, but on the mind?

Because history shows that survival is never only physical. Shelters may hold for a time, but if the mind collapses under fear, grief, or despair, survival becomes hollow. Families fracture. Communities crumble. Trauma repeats across generations.

This book exists because war and disaster are not only matters of nations and armies; they are human realities. They strike households, children, parents, and neighbors. They test not only our supplies but our psychology, our perspective, our capacity to endure.

We live in a world where threats of war, terror, disaster, and upheaval remain constant. To pretend otherwise is to fall into the trap of denial; the belief that “it cannot happen here.” That lie has cost millions their chance to prepare.

The purpose of this volume is not to spread fear but to awaken readiness. It is a companion to The Beating of War Drums trilogy, focusing not on the survival of the body but of the mind. It is written so that when storms come: whether wars, disasters, or personal upheavals; you will have practices, perspectives, and inner strength to endure, to heal, and to help others.

This book is needed because the greatest battlefield is often invisible. It is the mind. And if we prepare it, we not only increase our chances of surviving war, but also of preventing it.

“The mind that is prepared is harder to defeat than the body that is armed.”

• Key Concepts: Anticipatory fear, uncertainty, the psychology of looming threat.
• Practices: Writing a “fear inventory,” guided visualization of facing uncertainty.

• Key Concepts: Mental toughness vs. flexibility, stress inoculation, mindset training.
• Practices: Breathing drills, stress-exposure exercises, journaling on past resilience.

• Key Concepts: Preparing children emotionally, shared rituals, building secure attachments.
• Practices: Family “circle talks,” resilience games for children, creating shared mantras.

• Key Concepts: Worldview, philosophy, and meaning as shields. Stoicism, faith, humanism.
• Practices: Daily gratitude journaling, reframing loss, study of role models in adversity.

• Key Concepts: Group resilience, trust-building, shared responsibility.
• Practices: Group storytelling sessions, community rituals, mutual support pacts.

• Key Concepts: Fear as a companion, fight-flight-freeze response, managing      hypervigilance.
• Practices: Breathing for grounding, naming emotions, “fear container” journaling.

• Key Concepts: Coping strategies: avoidance, resilience, finding small joys.
• Practices: Creating daily routines, ritual meals, “3 joys a day” exercise.

• Key Concepts: Maintaining bonds when betrayal and paranoia rise.
• Practices: Trust-building dialogues, shared oaths, secret symbols of solidarity.

• Key Concepts: Hope as survival fuel, meaning-making under hardship, future orientation.
• Practices: Letters to the future, hope rituals (candles, prayers), collective chants.

• Key Concepts: Anchoring identity and humanity in routine and ritual.
• Practices: Micro-rituals (washing, prayer, poetry), group rituals of remembrance.

• Key Concepts: The burden of unspoken trauma, cultural silence, survivor’s guilt.
• Practices: Story circles, anonymous confession journals, letter-writing to the lost.

• Key Concepts: Trauma, PTSD, grief, guilt, resilience vs. fragility.
• Practices: Guided memory processing, trauma narratives, mindfulness grounding.

• Key Concepts: Forgiveness vs. justice, reconciliation, moral injury.
• Practices: Forgiveness letters, role-reversal exercises, rituals of reconciliation.

• Key Concepts: Identity loss and rebirth, rediscovering meaning, post-war roles.
• Practices: “Who am I now?” journaling, self-portrait exercise, rebuilding identity maps.

• Key Concepts: Passing on lessons, intergenerational trauma, healing through teaching.
• Practices: Family storytelling, community memorial projects, “legacy letters.”

• Key Concepts: Preventing recurrence, building cultures of peace, inner resilience as prevention.
• Practices: Reflective journaling, meditation guides, historical lessons, group exercises for prevention.

War does not begin with the first explosion. It begins in whispers, in silence, in the tightening of the chest when rumors spread. It begins in the waiting time; when the imagination turns shadows into monsters and the mind exhausts itself with dread.

This section, Before War: Preparing the Mind, addresses the season when nothing has yet happened, but everything feels inevitable. It is the moment when people buy flour they may never use, repair tools they hope never to need, and glance anxiously at the sky as though it already holds danger.

Modern warfare rarely comes with clear declarations or distant battlefields. It is sudden, unpredictable, and often close to home. Civilians, not just soldiers, carry the weight of fear, uncertainty, and disruption. In such times, the strength of one’s body may not be enough. The mind itself becomes the first line of defense.

• Fear can cripple before the first shot is fired.
• Resilience can be forged in daily life long before crises arrive.
• Families that prepare together withstand trauma more steadily.
• Perspective shapes whether suffering breaks or strengthens.
• Communities that share courage create fortresses stronger than stone.

This section lays the foundation for everything that follows. In Part II, we will explore how to endure war once it arrives. In Part III, we will examine how to heal after it ends. But first, we must understand that survival begins long before either. It begins with the inner preparation of the mind, the weaving of bonds within families, the shaping of perspective, and the forging of community courage.

Without preparation, the shock of war overwhelms. With preparation, even the darkest storm can be met with steadiness.

This section is not only for those in war zones. It is for anyone living in uncertain times; whether facing global conflict, natural disaster, or personal crisis. The same principles of mental preparation apply to all forms of hardship. History and psychology teach us that those who prepare in mind suffer less, recover faster, and often help others endure.

As you read, remember, these are not abstract lessons. They are lived truths, drawn from survivors across history and from the science of the human mind. Each chapter will give you both understanding and practical tools: rituals, exercises, and reflection, to prepare your own mind, your family, and your community.

“War begins long before the battlefield. It begins in the mind. Prepare there first, and you will endure more than you thought possible.”

Preview of What Follows_ 7

Introduction to Part I — Before War: Preparing the Mind_ 11

Chapter 1: The Shadow Before the Storm_ 13

Practice – Dealing with Fear 25

Journal Experience Chapter 1: The Shadow Before the Storm_ 27

Chapter 2: Resilience as Armor 33

Building Mental Armor: Practices_ 49

Journal Experience Chapter 2: Resilience as Armor 51

Chapter 3: Family as a Fortress_ 59

Building the Family Fortress: Practices_ 73

Journal Experience Chapter 3: Building the Family Fortress: Practices 75

Chapter 4: The Power of Perspective_ 83

Building Perspective as Shield: Practices_ 95

Journal Experience Chapter 4: Building Perspective as Shield: Practices 97

Chapter 5: Communities of Courage_ 105

Building Communities of Courage: Practices_ 115

Journal Experience Chapter 5: Building Communities of Courage: Practices 117

Introduction to the Bonus Section — The Psychology of Denial 125

Practices: Moving Beyond Denial 139

Journal Experience Bonus Section: Practices: Moving Beyond Denial 141

Purpose of Part I 149

Introduction to Part II — During War: Enduring the Pressure_ 153

Chapter 6: Living with Fear 155

Practices for Living with Fear 169

Journal Experience Chapter 6: Practices for Living with Fear 171

Chapter 7: Coping Under Siege_ 179

Practices for Coping Under Siege_ 193

Journal Experience Chapter 7: Practices for Coping Under Siege_ 195

Chapter 8: Trust in Darkness_ 203

Practices for Building and Preserving Trust 215

Journal Experience Chapter 8: Practices for Building and Preserving Trust 217

Chapter 9: The Fire of Hope_ 225

Practice: Hope_ 241

Journal Entry Chapter 9: Practice: Hope_ 243

Chapter 10: The Rituals of Endurance_ 251

Practices: Creating Rituals of Endurance_ 261

Journal Experience Chapter 10: Practices: Creating Rituals of Endurance 263

Continuity Overview: Part II — During War: Enduring the Pressure_ 271

Introduction to Part III — After War: Healing and Rebuilding_ 273

Chapter 11: The Weight of Trauma_ 275

Practices for Healing Trauma_ 289

Journal Entry Chapter 11: Practices for Healing Trauma_ 291

Chapter 12: The Work of Grief 299

Practices for Grieving_ 309

Journal Exercise Chapter 12: Practices for Grieving_ 311

Chapter 13: The Burden of Guilt 319

Practices for Healing Guilt 331

Journal Entry Chapter 13: Practices for Healing Guilt 333

Chapter 14: The Silence and the Word_ 341

Practices for Navigating Silence and Speech_ 355

Journal Entry Chapter 14: Practices for Navigating Silence and Speech 357

Chapter 15: The Bridge of Forgiveness_ 365

Practices for Forgiveness_ 379

Journal Entry Chapter 15: Practices for Forgiveness_ 381

Chapter 16: Rebuilding Identity_ 389

Practices for Rebuilding Identity_ 399

Journal Entry Chapter 16: Practices for Rebuilding Identity_ 401

Chapter 17: Teaching Forward_ 409

Practices for Teaching Forward_ 421

Journal Entry Chapter 17: Practices for Teaching Forward_ 423

Continuity Overview: Part III — After War: Healing and Rebuilding_ 431

Chapter 18: Journaling for the Wounded Mind_ 435

Practices for Journaling_ 445

Journal Entry Chapter 18: Practices for Journaling_ 447

Chapter 19: Meditations for Fear, Hope, and Healing_ 457

Practices: Meditations for Fear, Hope, and Healing_ 469

Journal Entry Chapter 19: Practices: Meditations for Fear, Hope, and Healing 471

Chapter 20: Exercises in Resilience_ 481

Practices: Exercises in Resilience_ 491

Journal Exercise Chapter 20: Practices: Exercises in Resilience_ 493

Chapter 21: Historical Lessons and Seeds of Prevention_ 503

Practices: Planting Seeds of Prevention_ 515

Journal Entry Chapter 21: Historical Lessons and Seeds of Prevention 517

Continuity Overview: Part IV — Reflections, Guides, and Practices_ 525

Conclusion / Epilogue_ 527

Appendix A: Guided Journaling Prompts_ 531

Appendix B: Suggested Readings_ 533

Appendix C: Resources for Survivors and Communities_ 535

Appendix D: Guided Journaling Prompts_ 537

Appendix E: Suggested Readings in Psychology, History, and Spiritual Resilience 539

Appendix F: Resources for Survivors and Communities_ 541

Final Section: When the Time Has Come_ 543

Living Purposely in the Midst 547

Concluding Reflection — The Quiet Sanctuary We Build Within_ 550

Closing Note to the Reader 551

Author: Charles DesJardins, Ph.D.
Series:  Safe Haven USA — Post-Trilogy Works
Genre / Category:  Philosophy, Psychology, & Human Resilience
Format: Paperback, Hardcover, Kindle (Coming Soon)
Publisher: Independent — Safe Haven USA Press
Official Websites:

www.thebeatingofwardrums.com
www.safehavenusa.org