Tri-Youth Volunteers conducted psychosocial interventions in MAKIMA area of Sarangani Province on February 27,
March 10, 14, & 26, 2009.
Bringing Hopes
For many volunteers, it started as a way of spending time with barkada, visiting new places, tasting new experience, eating food but it turn out to be more than just fun.
The psycho social intervention we have conducted in different elementary school has been a light that keeps the hope of children, parents, teachers in the conflict affected areas alive. The sudden outpouring of warmth and enthusiastic smiles from visiting volunteers has kept them off balance from the daily burden and boredom of their life in the conflict affected areas. More than the foods and toys, school supplies that we brought, it was the time spent together in the classrooms and in the fields that makes the school community a true haven for friendliness. Indeed the school exudes the spirit a child friendly school.
Yet it was not only the community’s hopes that were rekindled. For the young volunteers, even the little they have contributed as individuals has imparted a sense of hope for our nation. Many have spoken in the silence of their hearts the necessity of the spirit of volunteerism as a concrete expression of their hope for peace in Mindanao. Yes, the little they give if put together creates a wave of hope that will create bigger waves of hopes.
Giving Smiles
Hope is not hope unless there is joy in the heart. The concrete expression of this joy is the giving and receiving of smiles. Mother Teresa of Calcutta in her expression of peace said “Peace begins with a smile”. Children smiles are beautiful gifts that the volunteers received as they share stories with fellow volunteers on the way home after the psycho social intervention.
The children too showed appreciation to their ate’s and kuya’s in their generous warm smiles and hugs as we celebrated the culmination of the activities. As our vehicles moved out in the area, children smiling and waving their hands to us are manifestations of joys.
Listening to stories
We are a people who like stories. Only now, the horror of armed conflict and terrorism has dominated the pages of our newspapers, the screen of our television, and the minds of our people. Are there not enough good stories around us? Hope happens when good stories are shared. Hopes happens when we dares to create new stories of heroism among us.
That is exactly what we have done in the schools that we have visited. That is what we have done in the children we played and learned with as we make interventions in their life. We thought we are there to make them happy, to tell them stories instead they give our young volunteers stories of their life. How they have persistently pursued their studies despite setbacks brought about by armed conflict.. They tell us stories of poverty and hunger but also stories of surviving together thru sharing of their goods. They tell us their experience as they were held hostage of a fleeing armed men pursued by the military. The stories of endless gunfire’s and helicopters hovering their communities as it fired machine guns.
Notwithstanding the stories of gunfires, evacuation, fear are also stories of heroism…caring hands of teachers guiding and assuring them of their presence in their terrifying ordeal, stories of well meaning people who give not out of publicity but out of a deep sense of brotherhood and connectivity. They tell true stories of how they continually nurture friendship among them as Christians, Lumads and Muslims living together despite the bad publicity in the mass media.
Yes, we know they will tell our stories as we gather together in one day praying, singing, dancing, painting, sharing our talents, foods, resources. They will tell our stories of giving and receiving one another. Good stories enkindled hope to our children, to our people.
Rekindling Friendships
Hope grows stronger as we continually create bonds of friendship. Yes as the Christian teaching will say “there is no greater love than these, to lay down one’s life for one’s friend”. Gratuitous to say that the interventions we made have opened hearts and minds among our volunteers, the children as well as the military.
Never before have it spoken so strongly that as our military entered into the classrooms and joined in the make a child happy day, they too were surprised with the warmth they have received afterwards from the children. Affirmations, friendship have been opened because everyone unarmed itself with their biases. Guns are silent, a new way has been rediscovered, only time can establish if we continue creating bonds of friendship.
Revisiting dreams
What is beautiful in life is what we have the freedom to dream and to make those dreams come true, says an unknown author. Hope continues because we dare to dream big dreams.
Yet it terrifies us to know that our children in conflict areas dream only of bearing arms in the near future as they harbor thoughts of revenge. It terrifies us to discover that even among children in the same classrooms, they dreams of separate ways in the near future some wanting to become soldiers while others member of the revolutionary movements. It disheartened us to know that many stop dreaming because they are occupied with the necessities of survival.
Dreams are free, so let us make big dreams and pursue it. One day with children, we are wrong on our first impression as for as we share deeper into their life, they dream of peace, of secure community. They dream of a good school with the basic infrastructures and books available. They dream of a bountiful harvest in their farms, of fathers, brothers handling plowshares instead of arms. They dream to become a doctor, a teacher, an engineer, a good politicians. They dream to be one day a peacemaker for they too have had enough share of violence and politicians who bigmouth.
Yes, many lessons have been learned, ,hopes enkindled, smiles given and received, stories told, friendship created and dreams revisited. We continue to journey for peace in our land.
For many volunteers, it started as a way of spending time with barkada, visiting new places, tasting new experience, eating food but it turn out to be more than just fun.
The psycho social intervention we have conducted in different elementary school has been a light that keeps the hope of children, parents, teachers in the conflict affected areas alive. The sudden outpouring of warmth and enthusiastic smiles from visiting volunteers has kept them off balance from the daily burden and boredom of their life in the conflict affected areas. More than the foods and toys, school supplies that we brought, it was the time spent together in the classrooms and in the fields that makes the school community a true haven for friendliness. Indeed the school exudes the spirit a child friendly school.
Yet it was not only the community’s hopes that were rekindled. For the young volunteers, even the little they have contributed as individuals has imparted a sense of hope for our nation. Many have spoken in the silence of their hearts the necessity of the spirit of volunteerism as a concrete expression of their hope for peace in Mindanao. Yes, the little they give if put together creates a wave of hope that will create bigger waves of hopes.
Giving Smiles
Hope is not hope unless there is joy in the heart. The concrete expression of this joy is the giving and receiving of smiles. Mother Teresa of Calcutta in her expression of peace said “Peace begins with a smile”. Children smiles are beautiful gifts that the volunteers received as they share stories with fellow volunteers on the way home after the psycho social intervention.
The children too showed appreciation to their ate’s and kuya’s in their generous warm smiles and hugs as we celebrated the culmination of the activities. As our vehicles moved out in the area, children smiling and waving their hands to us are manifestations of joys.
Listening to stories
We are a people who like stories. Only now, the horror of armed conflict and terrorism has dominated the pages of our newspapers, the screen of our television, and the minds of our people. Are there not enough good stories around us? Hope happens when good stories are shared. Hopes happens when we dares to create new stories of heroism among us.
That is exactly what we have done in the schools that we have visited. That is what we have done in the children we played and learned with as we make interventions in their life. We thought we are there to make them happy, to tell them stories instead they give our young volunteers stories of their life. How they have persistently pursued their studies despite setbacks brought about by armed conflict.. They tell us stories of poverty and hunger but also stories of surviving together thru sharing of their goods. They tell us their experience as they were held hostage of a fleeing armed men pursued by the military. The stories of endless gunfire’s and helicopters hovering their communities as it fired machine guns.
Notwithstanding the stories of gunfires, evacuation, fear are also stories of heroism…caring hands of teachers guiding and assuring them of their presence in their terrifying ordeal, stories of well meaning people who give not out of publicity but out of a deep sense of brotherhood and connectivity. They tell true stories of how they continually nurture friendship among them as Christians, Lumads and Muslims living together despite the bad publicity in the mass media.
Yes, we know they will tell our stories as we gather together in one day praying, singing, dancing, painting, sharing our talents, foods, resources. They will tell our stories of giving and receiving one another. Good stories enkindled hope to our children, to our people.
Rekindling Friendships
Hope grows stronger as we continually create bonds of friendship. Yes as the Christian teaching will say “there is no greater love than these, to lay down one’s life for one’s friend”. Gratuitous to say that the interventions we made have opened hearts and minds among our volunteers, the children as well as the military.
Never before have it spoken so strongly that as our military entered into the classrooms and joined in the make a child happy day, they too were surprised with the warmth they have received afterwards from the children. Affirmations, friendship have been opened because everyone unarmed itself with their biases. Guns are silent, a new way has been rediscovered, only time can establish if we continue creating bonds of friendship.
Revisiting dreams
What is beautiful in life is what we have the freedom to dream and to make those dreams come true, says an unknown author. Hope continues because we dare to dream big dreams.
Yet it terrifies us to know that our children in conflict areas dream only of bearing arms in the near future as they harbor thoughts of revenge. It terrifies us to discover that even among children in the same classrooms, they dreams of separate ways in the near future some wanting to become soldiers while others member of the revolutionary movements. It disheartened us to know that many stop dreaming because they are occupied with the necessities of survival.
Dreams are free, so let us make big dreams and pursue it. One day with children, we are wrong on our first impression as for as we share deeper into their life, they dream of peace, of secure community. They dream of a good school with the basic infrastructures and books available. They dream of a bountiful harvest in their farms, of fathers, brothers handling plowshares instead of arms. They dream to become a doctor, a teacher, an engineer, a good politicians. They dream to be one day a peacemaker for they too have had enough share of violence and politicians who bigmouth.
Yes, many lessons have been learned, ,hopes enkindled, smiles given and received, stories told, friendship created and dreams revisited. We continue to journey for peace in our land.
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