2009 Peace Essay Contest
High School Winning Entries
First Place
Erika Davis, 12th Grade, Midlothian H. S.:
Living for a purpose offers the most personal fulfillment, but demands the compassion and courage, deepens one's perspective and strengthens the bond between God and man. Over my past two years of working with several refugee families from Burundi, Africa, I have experienced both the emotional and physical challenges and gratifications of selflessness.
My church sponsors three refugee families, assisting them with housing, food, clothing and other essentials. Unfortunately, their current living facilities, crammed apartments situated in an instable and violent community, do not offer them the optimal safety. While improved housing is being arranged by my church, the families continue to live each day with hope. Regardless of the possible danger threatening us, my friend from my youth group, her mother, and I visit the families and tutor their children every Wednesday afternoon.
Imagine the scene: With painted cement walls and silence around us, we knock on their door. When it opens, I look down to see a little girl in a green dress with brown eyes and a bright smile looking up at me. As we walk in I am enthusiastically greeted by more children with warm hugs, little kisses, and overjoyed laughter. That moment is the best feeling in the world.
Since the father and mother of each family speak very little to no English, we rely on the children, who amazingly picked up the language, for means of communication. In order for the children to succeed in America, having the opportunities and foundations to support themselves and their family, we realize the importance of educating them. Among the various activities we do with the children, we mainly help them understand and complete their homework and teach common mannerisms of our culture. We work with a total of twelve children, ranging from 1 to 13 years-old. While we spend time with all of them, I have gained a different personal relationship with each one- which is worth more to me than anything. Every moment I spend with them brings me closer to truly understanding real love and compassion.
Comparing their life to mine gives me an entirely new perspective on one's purpose in life and the journey to discover and achieve that purpose. The families escaped from a war-torn, corrupted land to the strange, new United States where they had to begin an entirely new life. While they are much safer here, they still undergo many difficulties. The fathers struggle to maintain steady jobs, the mothers care for their young children, and the language barrier is tough for them to break. However, the moment I enter into their apartment, it seems as though they are living in a perfect paradise. The children are laughing and the parents seem satisfied with what they have. From them I have learned that true happiness is not found through money or any other material desires, it is found through a strong family relationship and faith in God. In my eyes, the families' purpose has been to prove to, society that through the sufferings they have endured, they have learned the true value of life.
Gaining a personal and intimate understanding of those who live in less fortunate conditions than myself has given me more perspective on peace. Through understanding, peace can be possible. Ever since I developed a relationship with the refugee family, I have learned about the injustice that destroys humans and their homes. I have learned that actions mean more than words, and bring the world closer to peace. Without the courage to go beyond my boundaries of my house and local community, I would have never known of the pain and suffering that so many humans experience in this world. Now I am encouraged to make a difference in the refugee families' lives, just as they have done for me. I will never forget each time the children tell me, "I love you" before I leave every Wednesday. Those three powerful words, keep me coming back again and again. Love is the reward for peace.
Second Place
Katie Earnhardt, 11th Grade, St. Gertrude H. S. :
"peace /pees/ noun: a state or condition conducive to, proceeding from, or characterized by tranquility" (www dictionary.com)
When most hear this word, thoughts of global peace resulting from hours of arduous peace talks come to mind. When I hear this word, I think of an inner peace, a state of mind you find within yourself.
At one point in my life, this inner peace proved to be difficult to find. I went through one year, three-hundred and sixty-five days, and fifty-two weeks of never being able to rest peacefully, always wondering if I had forgotten something or wronged someone. I searched everywhere I could think of books, movies, psychologists, the internet, to find this inner peace I longed for. I consistently turned up empty-handed. I often pondered whether or not I had done something to deserve this constant anxiety. I fought with everyone in my life not because I was angry with them, but because I was angry with myself. I strained my relationships until several shattered, and many came close. That year easily became one of the most trying times I had ever endured. Finally, something occurred to me as I was lying awake in my bed one early morning. Peace comes from within, not from these outside sources that I had been fruitlessly pursuing.. It is entirely up to myself whether or not I want to be peaceful.
As an African Proverb says, "Peace is costly, but it is worth the expense." This proved to be extraordinarily true in my journey for inner peace. While it may have cost me countless hours of sleep and many lost friendships, I can now say with all confidence I am a better person. I have surrounded myself with those I love and who love me back and created an environment conducive to tranquility, just as the definition of peace itself states.
This may not be your stereotypical journey for peace, but I feel it can act as a model for others in the pursuit of it. Just because the search for peace may be costly emotionally does not mean it should be given up on. In fact, it means we, as a society, should work even harder for it, individually and together as a group. The most cherished things in life are the ones that take the most effort.
Third Place
Bella Jasarevic, 11th Grade, St. Gertrude H. S. :
This past summer was the first time I went back to the town in which I was born. I remember driving along the winding roads, looking out into the beautiful mountains. Driving through small villages, I could still see the effects of the genocide which took place sixteen years ago, the year I was born. I was overwhelmed with emotions as I passed an entire block of houses which were barely standing. The backyards which once existed are now closed off as a precaution because there are many explosives still buried in the ground from the war. I could see many holes in the cement where the bullets had hit.
Finally, after driving for a couple of hours through the mountainous country, I could see my destination-- the Adriatic Sea. Once I arrived, I left my luggage behind so that I could explore the small town. I remember walking down the street and having this old woman in a wheelchair stop me. She looked at me and began sobbing. I became really confused. What did I do to make this person cry? When she finally lifted her head, she looked at me with eyes so pure and said, "You must be my brother's daughter."
I was born in 1992 in a small town in Croatia during the biggest civil war among the countries of Croatia, Bosnia, Slovenia, Serbia, and Montenegro. When I was only ten days old, my father was killed. Driving home from the hospital, my parents were pulled over by a Serbian soldier. My mother looked up at the man whose eyes were dark, abysmal, and as cold as stone. She felt her heart sink down into the pit of her stomach as the heartless soldier ordered her to hand me over so that he could kill me. My father stepped in and insisted that they kill him instead. He took both my father and my grandfather and shot them in the points of the sign of the cross.
Although some nights I lie in bed and wish my father was down the hall from me, I know that he died so that I could live and one day see that these countries could live in peace. An African proverb states, "Peace is costly but it is worth the expense." Many people died in the war, and eventually the people who survived have come to realize that killing doesn't solve issues. Of course there are still a few problems faced in these countries, but at least they are no longer battling for power and are able to live freely and independently.
Honorable Mention:
Allison Shomaker, Maggie Walker Governor's School
:
Reflections on: "Peace is costly but it is worth the expense"
There are millions of proverbs, from thousands of countries around the globe. The African Congo sums up peace well in six words, "peace is preferable to the rich"; maybe because peace is a better investment than is war. It is quite true that "peace is more costly than war" in more ways than one. It is costly to build a tranquil world financially, emotionally, and physically, but it is well "worth the effort". If we all pull together and work towards one goal, we can achieve anything.
Financially, many people believe that peaceful resolutions would take more money and time than a war. As Prussian soldier and military theorist Karl von Clausewitz once said, "War is the continuation of policy by other means."
To spread the message of peace around the world, cultures and governments are required to advertise and teach. All of this takes money, and many believe that it is not worth the effort, but it is. By creating a diplomatic, dedicated society now it will strengthen generations for years to come. By introducing a peaceful lifestyle to our children now, it will help them grow and thrive. Eventually they will teach their children to live peacefully, thus carrying the message of peace for centuries to come.
Emotionally thousands of people have invested their whole lives into the military and into defending their countries. A great , example would be troops from around the world. Soldiers dedicate their whole lives to defend their country. As Aristotle once preached, "We make war that we may live in peace." This is a quote that thousands of armed forces live by. Think of what it would do to these dedicated troops who have invested many years in the protection of their country if we all reverted to peace. At first they might feel hurt that we didn't appreciate their service, but as the years progressed they would come to realize that now their children could grow up safe, never needing to worry about the violence of battles and the devastation of war.
Physically, spreading peace throughout the far reaches of the world would be exhausting. There are about 194 countries in the whole world, stretching over ever single continent, from the snow covered ground of Antarctica to the tropical banks of the Amazon to the dry deserts of Sub-Saharan Africa. Each of these countries has its own governing system, means of judgment and consequences, and method of keeping the peace, whether it be war and bloodshed or peaceful resolution. To get all the leaders of all these countries together for a common cause, to achieve worldwide peace, would be quite difficult and require a great combined effort, but it is possible.
Younger generations of today understand that peace is an achievable task. If we try, we can change the world! Like Mahatma Gandhi once said, "We must become the change we want to see." No matter how hard, or how impossible it may seem, we can only make a difference by persevering. By pulling together the international youth of today and rallying for a common cause we can "be the change we want to see." We, the global youth, understand that universal peace is pricey financially, emotionally, and physically, but if it is achieved now, it will help the coming generations lo preserve the tranquility of earth.