Y O U NG VOI C E S
Using your voice
is a good choice!
by Kai Simson
I
t’s important for young people
to have a voice. That’s why I ran
for Student Council at Sedona
Red Rock High School. Our school
is our community. If we want to
make it better, we need to get involved. Our generation has different ways of looking at things and
we think different is good.
This summer I really got how
much we can learn from sharing with people from around the
world. I attended the Global Young
Leaders Conference. Ten days with
kids from 140 countries working
together to solve big problems. It
wasn’t easy, but it was a very cool
process. We came up with ideas
together that we never would have
on our own.
The other night I met the Nelson Mandela Washington Fellows
from 17 African countries. It was
amazing to hear about all the good
things they are doing to make this
world better, and they are only
5-10 years older than me! It really
inspired me. If we understand each
other and work together, we will
make a big difference.
30 IMAGINE l Autumn 2015
Peace by Piece
by Andrea Smith
L
ast June, the Sedona International City of Peace committee had a meeting with Jean
Houston, a well known author of
mythology and consciousness. At
the meeting Jean told us that we had
all come here to do something, and
this was the time. I got the message
loud and clear. At that very instant I
decided I was going to do the “Square
Project” that had been percolating in
my soul for the last 40 years.
My Square Project was creating a quilt, a tapestry of our love
for peace that can begin to blanket
us all with its vibration. I believe
all of us can make a difference. So,
with the entire community involved—schools, churches, senior
centers, and businesses—we came
together and began to create. On
six inch squares of paper, we each
created expressions of what peace
means to us. All in all, 1,399 individual squares were created. All of
this translated into 14 rectangular
boards that each measured eight by
four feet.
On September 21, 2014, International Peace Day, we held the annual celebration in Sedona, Arizona,
and called it “Peace by Piece.” Although we started only nine weeks
earlier, I never doubted that it could
and would be done. Tlaquepaque
General Manager, Wendy Lippman,
offered their beautiful venue for
the event, and we were on our way.
The Sedona International City of
Peace became partners and sponsored the Global Feast for Peace and
hosted entertainment offered by
generous local musicians and artists.
Everyone supported us—the mayor
of Sedona, the superintendent of
schools, and generous Sedona business owners.
After the event, the fourteen
boards with their 1399 peace by
piece squares traveled to schools
for further sharing. A video of the
event produced by Skip Thomas
with children singing his original
song sung by local singer-songwriter Adalia Tara encapsulated the
warmth and energy of the event.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words and I believe a video
is worth a million! This video was
subsequently shown at World Wisdom Days. We are planning to do
the Peace by Piece event again on
September 20, 2015 at Tlaquepaque.
We all have different purposes
here on earth. Mine is to help create
peace as an artist. I want it for my
children, grandchildren and every
other person on earth. We must do
what we can to anchor the feeling
of love, oneness and peace. My way
is to create this quilt and tapestry of
love. I believe with all my heart that
we can, peace by piece, patch ourselves back together, finding peace
within as a way to have
peace on earth.
What’s your purpose? What
has been percolating in your soul?
Chances are, its time to get on with it!