The Peace Tree

In order to commemorate Remembrance Day, the children completed a Peace Tree project. Based on the idea of Yoko Ono’s Wish Trees which carry messages of hope from all over the world, each child created several wishes for peace that we wrote on cards and tied to the Gingko tree in the front garden. The Gingko tree seemed an ideal candidate because in Eastern cultures they signify longevity, hope, resilience and peace. Some of the kids needed help writing their messages and others could do it for themselves but everyone got right into the idea and we had wishes of peace that included teaching people to read, sharing our food, knitting for peace and giving the person beside you a hug. One of the best messages came from the second youngest child, a wee lad of three, who suggested that he would take a long walk in the snow for peace. We talked about how many wars might have been avoided if the people waging them stopped and took a long walk in the snow before declaring their intentions. The discussion went on for a long time and took many turns  so when parents arrived, we were pulling coats on and rushing out to tie our messages onto the tree. Some of the parents added their wishes to the tree as well. Truthfully, we ended up with chaos for peace in the end but as the messages still fluttered there the next morning, I could not help but reflect on how far reaching the effects of an education for peace might be in the future.