FALL 2007Jacob Peter Glass
[The essay contest, sponsored by Mickleton and Mullica Hill MMs, was open to middle schoolers at Friends School Mullica Hill. The prize is a scholarship donated to the school in the name of the winner.—ED.]
Winner in the 2007 Helen Glass Essay for Peace ContestMy peace essay is about Kris Robb. He was my camp counselor for the past four years at Camp Na-Sho-Pa. Kris is from Scotland, and he is twenty-two years old. Over the past four summers, Kris and I have become really good friends. We refer to each other as brothers. That's just what we are to each other. Kris looks out for me with girls, gives me advice about not getting into trouble, and teaches me how to be a good person. He didn't just do it because it was his job, but because we are friends.
Kris always told the campers and me to respect everyone and "not to judge a book by its cover." He taught us to respect other people's property and to treat girls with respect. We learned how to get attention without being jerks. Those of you reading this may be wondering what this has to do with peace; well, it all started one summer's night.
Every night we have a different evening activity. One night we went to the local skating rink with our division. Everyone was having fun and talking to people. It was really a lot of fun. At camp, I am well known, and pretty much every one is my friend. During the night I was skating around and talking to everyone, just having fun. I noticed Kris was talking to a girl that most kids my age would describe as a "dork," not someone I would usually go up to and expect to be mint.
Kris was talking to her for a while, and then he called me over to talk to this girl with him. It turned out that the girl was really "cool." We talked for the rest of the night. Unfortunately, she left camp the next day. It was a shame that I thought she would be a "dork" before I got to know her. We could have been really good friends. Later that night, in the bunk, I asked Kris why he asked me to come over, and not someone else. He said, "You are a nice boy, and I know you know how to have a good time."
I'll never forget that night because it taught me an important life lesson. I should really get to know someone before I judge them. That's what Kris was doing, and that's one of the main reasons I look up to him. I think that getting to know someone better, before you know if they are "cool" or a jerk, is the best thing you can give someone. I know this because I used to be overweight, and people just made fun of me before they got to know me. It didn't make me feel good; so I know how others must feel.
Most wars are based on a certain group not liking another just because of what they look like, sex, religion, and other unimportant reasons. If they got to know how people act before they start unnecessary violence, I'm sure this would be a more peaceful world. Imagine if the Germans didn't judge the Jews just because they were Jewish. Imagine if the Janjaweeds of Darfur knew the ethnic groups they were destroying. Or just imagine if kids didn't judge other kids by the way they look, or the clique they would best fit into, or the label they look like. Kris Robb taught me this lesson, and I think if everyone was taught this, then we could have true peace.
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Sunday, August 12, 2007 at 11:23 PM
