"Drums for Peace"

Introduction

We all want to see change in the world. One of the key changes we wish to see is an end to war and terror. We wish for peace. In schools we can sow seeds of peace, and make a real difference.

People whose lives made a difference offer us some guidance:

• “Be the change you want to see in the world” – Mahatma Gandhi
• “If you want peace, work for justice” – Paul VI
• “Peace is our gift to each other” – Elie Weisel
• “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend” – Martin Luther King, Jr
• “All works of love are works of peace” – Mother Teresa
• “To dialogue is to work for universal brotherhood on earth” – Chiara Lubich

Our pupils, from various traditions, backgrounds and beliefs around Europe are striving to make a difference by practicing tolerance and understanding and by valuing diversity, building peace, sharing talents.

Our world has a great future!

 

Drums for Peace

The children from the 5 Comenius Schools have written especially for this project, and the poems are published by our school every year.

As well as writing poems on the theme of “Peace” the children in these schools also made efforts to be peace-makers themselves.

We used the “Cube of Love” with its six mottos. This was a way proposed by Chiara Lubich, founder of Focolare Movement. The six faces of the cube each have one of these mottos from “The Art of Loving”:

• Be the first to love
• Love one another
• Love everyone
• Share the others pain or joy
• Love God in others
• Love your enemy

We also used these hints for peace-building which can be found on the “Drums for Peace” website:

• Say what the problem is.
• Talk about it calmly, rather than fight.
• Work out what everyone wants.
• Listen, as the others speak.
• Speak so everyone understands.
• Speak the truth.
• Treat everyone kindly.
• Trust that you will be able to solve the problem.
• Work out what you can do to prevent the problem happening again.
• Forgive.

We hope you like these poems. One poem has been selected as the overall winner.

The children will also beat drums for peace. In the past drums were often used to warn of war. We do the opposite. Our drums are for peace. Leader of our Drum Circle is Eddie O’Neill.

Drums for Peace is sponsored by UNICEF.

• Click here for information on what Comenius is
• Click here for information on Visits between the 5 schools involved in Comenius
• Click here to read some of the 'Drums for Peace' Poems our children wrote