Heading to work Monday morning to face 30 10- and 11-year-olds at Rashkis Elementary, I knew they would have questions and need an outlet of response. Before the shootings, I had planned for my students to write “Peaceful Poems” of their own, after sharing and reflecting on poems from the book “Peaceful Pieces” given to me by one of my students. My thoughts were that the holidays are a time for celebrating peace and hope and the book and poems would be a nice tie-in.

Little did I know how appropriate the assignment would align in helping my students deal with the emotions they were sorting through. As we briefly acknowledged the shootings, I told the students our focus should be on three main points:

• We are safe here at school. There are millions of children all across the nation who went to school Friday morning who were safe and protected. We need to remember that school is a safe place for us and not let fear overtake our actions.

• We have a responsibility (being the oldest in the school) to not discuss the topic of the shootings in front of younger students whether that be on the playground, the bus, or in the cafeteria. I shared it was hard enough for adults to process what happened and small children did not need to be burdened with that, so they needed to be very careful with their conversations.

• Instead of breeding an atmosphere of fear, we could spread peace, hope, and love and try to help a hurting nation heal by focusing on those things. Then, after reading a selection of poems on peace I told students about their assignment to write Three Poems of Peace. They had two nights to complete the task.

I had hoped the assignment might help the students process their feelings while focusing on something calming, more positive, than the actual horror of the situation. Even though the poems weren’t due until Wednesday, many students arrived Tuesday morning eager to share their Peaceful Poems. As the poems have continued to come in, I was inspired by the maturity, the depth of reflection, and the honesty shared in the poems. Some of the students suggested we send some of our poems to the students at Sandy Hook Elementary and one student took the initiative to find the address where such messages could be sent. Given this was a tragedy that indirectly seemed to affect us ALL, I wanted to share some of them with you. I hope you find them as inspiring as I do.

Bradey Scott is a fifth-grade teacher at Rashkis Elementary.

Gunfire

It beats in my heart,

The shot of the gun still rings,

And my spirit freezes.

As we mourn, grieve, and feel sorrow

For those who were lost,

We realize that even though we lost our loved ones,

We still have hope, and love, and compassion

And we will heal as long as we spread them.

Peace must maintain, or all will fail.

No matter what religion you are, or what race, or even how old you are,

All will be good

Bad will not prevail,

And our loved ones will be proud as they watch from above.

Life will go on and we will not forget them.

The wind blows, the breeze whispers,

“Peace is back, have hope, and have faith.”

As we let this settle, our spirits are no longer frozen.

They start to rise, even soar, the gunfire silences,

And all is calm.

Ankita

age 10

The Peaceful Club

You never need an invitation

To join the peaceful club.

Just hug someone you know

And spread your love.

Spread your love far and wide

And those who receive it will treasure it inside.

If there is peace in our world

There is no need for fear,

So keep peace alive

And don’t shed a tear.

Audrey

age 11

Peace Within

Love is the KEY

To open the lock of hate on the treasure chest heart.

You open up, look inside,

And there,

There is PEACE.

Ada

age 10

Planting Seeds

Peace and love come through in small things

Like picking up pencils and the smile that it brings

Even just talking, or playing a game

Can affect people in a way quite the same.

Deep from our hearts we’ll do a good deed

Which in another heart will plant a seed.

Soon that seed will bloom with care

And plant a seed in the heart of someone unaware.

Even when they give stickers at the bank

It gives me a reason to thank

All the peace and love in Chapel Hill

Where seeds and flowers are blooming still.

Kayla

age 10

Replacement

The stormy, thundering cloud

Opens itself

To reveal a bright, cloudless sky

A rainbow forms overhead

Replacing the dark, violent night.

Jusung

age 11

Hope Within Us

We all know that the victims’ bodies are

gone,

But their souls live within us,

Within ALL of us.

If we all dwell on it there is no hope,

But if we pick ourselves up,

There IS hope.

Charlotte, Rachel, Olivia,

Dylan, Jesse, Ana, Grace,

Anne, Emilie, Noah, Jessica,

Lauren, Mary, Victoria,

Daniel, Josephine, Madeline,

Catherine, Chase, James, Jack,

Caroline, Avielle, Benjamin,

And Allison

Are all people we won’t forget.

They were all great people.

They had families that cared for them.

In America, we shouldn’t judge people

By family members, by race,

By what’s on the outside.

We should judge on the inside.

The shooter’s family is not to blame.

When something brings you down

No matter how bad it is

We get up

There is always hope and sunshine,

But when the clouds and gloom

Block sunshine

We can always

Find HOPE

Within us.

Will

age 10

Moonlight

I lay down my head,

And slowly close my eyes,

Darkness fills my mind.

A vision appears,

Me,

No,

It doesn’t feel like me,

It feels like fear,

And has rage inside.

It feels like a shadow,

Living in a dark world,

Where people hate each other

And get killed by the second

There is no love,

No hope,

No one cares.

The world is a shadow devouring every life form,

Devouring itself,

Into a black hole,

Darkness and hate,

My mind is filled with darkness again.

I can’t wake up

NO, no,

I can’t get out,

Finally my eyes open,

Out the window, I see the moonlight.

Thank you moonlight.

Thank you.

Carolyn

age 10

Love and Peace

When hatred was in my mind

There was no peace.

When love was in my mind,

Peace came to me.

I love you.

You love me.

So we are peaceful.

I dream of a world filled with love and

peace.

Eric

Age 10