Past Essays

Past Winners: [ Zoe, 2002 ] [ Neil, 2003 ] [ Lee, 2004 ] [ Cassandra, 2005 ]

"I am done with great things and big things, great institutions and big success, and I am for those tiny invisible molecular moral forces that work from individual to individual, creeping through the crannies of the world like so many rootlets, or like the capillary oozing of water, yet which if you give them time, will rend the hardest monuments of man’s pride."
William James

2004 Theme: Describe courage in terms of creating a peaceful world. Give examples of how the current world would change and what kind of courage it would take to make those changes.

In Passionate Pursuit of Peace

by Lee R. Wilson
Portageville, Missouri

“Taco, Burrito – what’s comin’ outta your Speedo?” Juan Gonzalez was new to our school during our fifth grade year. It was recess, and several of my classmates surrounded Juan and were taunting him with our regular cadence of the chant. Somehow, I made them stop. I remember that my classroom teacher was proud of me and praised me to my mother. I also remember how deeply ashamed I felt of the “welcome” we had given Juan to our small school. I’m proud to say that Juan will graduate with me in May 2005. I have never had any tolerance for social injustice in any form. Accordingly, I have set a course for my life to make an actual, physical difference in the world. My innate global worldview, I now know, has been my personal philosophy all along, but my journey toward this realization began, perhaps, that very day. As a child, I didn’t realize that I had exhibited “courage” in standing up to my classmates until it was pointed out to me; I simply knew that the racial slurs were wrong and I wanted to do something about it.

I still do.

Peace in humanity must begin in the hearts of men, women and children everywhere. We have seen the brutal fallout of the absence of peace in man’s heart. WE see it everyday as cruel and crude jokes on school playgrounds, we see it in the form of petty and major crimes; we see it in the workplace as discrimination, exclusion and an inequality of the sexes. We see the absence of a heart at peace in the videos released by terrorists and in their attacks. We can find it in our history books as slavery and in our contemporary issues books as the lack of economic opportunity. The lack of peace in man’s heart is prevalent. It is so prevalent that humanity may be tempted to give up on godly ideals, but if we do, we give up too soon. The solution is found in courage.

The kind of courage that can abate the lack of peace in the heart of mankind is a fierce one. More importantly, however, is the truth that this passion for courage must be caught more than it is taught. Courage, then, burns white-hot alongside a passion for replicated itself. Sleek and strong, courage dresses itself in the armor of battle and searches for a willing host. Once settled inside its host it renders that host anything but settled, igniting a fire in the belly that prompts the host to right wrongs in his own sphere of influence. And thus it begins.

I am convinced that while the concept of world peace appears to be a lofty goal, it is attainable. If each individual would only present himself as a willing host for this white-hot courage with a passion for right, that courage would compel him to bring about peace in his own little orb of influence. Our world is filled with individuals, our spheres overlap. As each restored peace to his or her own spheres of influence, peace on Earth would inevitable result. Each individual must host courage, and I am willing to stake out my sphere.

If this world-changing courage is to be caught, I must demonstrate it to my neighbor ho must find it appealing enough to want what I have. Not in a covetous way, but in a participatory way. My neighbor catches this courage and introduces it to his neighbor and he shares it with those with whom he has influence. Soon, people are happier, more content, more willing to share, more anxious to work and to relax, less anxious to judge and more willing to love, to trust, and to be trustworthy. As though a rewind button has been pushed, the world begins to restore itself. Wrongs are righted by way of being discontinued. Generations of prejudice are reversed, ensuring a peaceful future for our children and their children. The air smells sweeter and the grass is greener and the sun shines brighter, not because of any material gain, but because of the measureless gain of the riches that come from a heart at peace. If we say we want a peaceful world, we must stand up. We must risk embarrassment and rejection and worse for the greater good. We must risk it all, for this is the kind of courage that will bring a nation and a world back to peace with God and man.

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