A little peace

There’s been a lot of talk about peace lately: efforts to open dialogue between contentious countries of the Middle East; how to achieve it in Iraq and Afghanistan and even how to reach it in U.S. cities. These days, even retailers hawk “peace on earth.”

But what does peace mean to children? Maybe children need to know that they have something to contribute to it, and that their contribution doesn’t have to be gigantic to be significant. And that people everywhere have many things in common.

A recent book provides a thoughtful tour of many places around the globe. In A Little Peace (opens in a new window) (National Geographic), photographs depict diverse people “At the market/Down the street/On a crowded bus.” The visuals are as poetic as the simple language in this provocative work. Together, they show how people the world over are different, but still have so much in common. And it suggests that children and young people, too, can create a little peace around the world.

This is a National Geographic book and so, there is a map and information about all of the places and subjects of the photographs as well as an afterward by the president of the U.S. Institute of Peace. (opens in a new window) I like the blending. I think it makes for a rich book that deserves to be read and reread — and help us begin a meaningful conversation with kids.

Let’s remind our children that peace indeed begins with ordinary people doing exceptional things — like extending “one hand/One smile/A single voice.” It’s not easy and it won’t be quick, but it is possible.