We Want Peace
An Essay by Abdul B.
Peace is a source of comfort, freedom, opportunity for education, unity, and access to basic rights. Peace allows individuals in a society to realize their potential and goals. Without peace, people will remain uneducated and deprived of opportunities to gain a higher education. This will inhibit their ability to tell the difference between good and bad. Such people are blind; they cannot differentiate between what’s morally right or wrong because they have not had the chance to read about various philosophies and about universal values. They cannot cope with the ups and downs of life, and miss out on enjoying their lives.
If a country is divided, people in that society are hopeless and unhappy. Every society should work hard to bring peace to their community in order to stay away from misery. Even if peace costs people money and health in the short-run, they should keep the long-run in mind, and know that a better tomorrow is good for everyone.
Peace is ultimately about loving and embracing one another. It is not just about war and conflict. One must seek peace within one’s self, with one’s peers, surroundings and the broader society. It is important to not only attain peace with the people around you, but also with yourself. Peace starts with little things — the everyday acts of greeting your parents in the morning or the act of saying hello to a street vendor. Each little act of kindness paves the path towards our ultimate goal of having peace.
Peace can begin with a smile. It is said that a smile can light up a room, so imagine what a world of smiles can do. If every day, someone does something kind for someone else, it will create a ripple effect — like when someone drops a stone into a pond. It generates a small ripple at first, but after a while, that little ripple has spread throughout the entire pond. World peace can be achieved in the same way. If someone apologizes to someone else, and they do the same, imagine what can happen!
When I think about peace, I think it is about that feeling that all is right with the world. How do I feel this? When everyone around me in my family, my circle of friends and my neighborhood is happy, eager to love, accept and relate…. I feel at peace. To me, it means following what my heart says and sharing mutual trust and respect for the people around me. If I had one thing to ask you all to do, it’d be to smile to the next person you see in life. Peace can begin with a smile.
