KIMOCHI (KEY.MO.CHEE) MEANS “FEELING” IN JAPANSE. Kimochis are what come inside each character! Kimochis are small pillows with a feeling on one side and a facial expression on the other. Using the characters and their Kimochis kids can get in touch with their emotions in a fun and comfortable way, building self-esteem and confidence one feeling at a time!

Their website is fun and interactive so you and your child can play together. To get your very own Kimochis or to learn more about this inventive company visit www.kimochis.com.

Soldiers of Peace gives us an uplifting look at the current geopolitical state of the world: contrary to popular belief, there are actually less armed conflicts in the world today than ever before. The world is changing fast and humankind is being confronted with rapid climate change, lack of fresh drinking water, ever decreasing bio-diversity, diminishing oil reserves and an ever-growing population.

These global challenges call for global solutions and these solutions will require cooperation on a global scale unprecedented in human history. Peace is the essential prerequisite because without peace we will be unable to achieve the levels of cooperation, inclusiveness and social equity necessary to solve these challenges. We would also have the vast amounts of resources required to tackle these issues.

This documentary closely examines the different ways in which governments and individuals can face these problems: they can deal with them through war or peace. There is a genuine wave occurring in all corners of the world right now, showing us that peace is not a utopia, but rather at arms length. Through numerous and beautiful examples, the film illustrates the many ways in which people and communities are making a positive change, today. Even though we may instinctively know that this change is greatly needed to survive this 21st century, to see it unfold is truly exciting and you can play a part.

The definition of bullying is very hard to describe! I have been a victim of bullying but not physical. My definition of bullying is when people put others people down. People don’t always know they’re doing it. Also many people who are being bullied try to ignore it and put a smile on, but behind that smile deep inside they’re really hurt. Many people get bullied because they don’t fit in. What are they trying to fit into? POPULARS! CLIQUES! Well who cares if you don’t fit into A category. People need to make their own category. I mostly only see this behavior in girls. They try to be something they’re not. Everyone is beautiful, smart, and unique in their own way! So what I’m trying to say is that my main definition of bullying to me is people putting other people down for their own benefits, to make themselves feel better. I stand by what I said at challenge day. “If you want to call me something, call me beautiful.” If every person gave one compliment a day the world would be a better place. To the world you might only be one person, but to one person you might mean the world! – 9th grade Female Student, Michigan

One way I have changed from Challenge Day is how I look at people. Challenge Day taught me that people have scary things happening in their lives. By doing this event, I learned how to react to what people are like on the inside and not just what they are like on the outside. Challenge Day also helped me see what is happening in my own life - like what I am afraid of, scary moments, and being shy to other people. Challenge Day has changed the way I look at people forever. - 9th grade Male Student, Michigan

All of our kids are priceless. But some are costly. Like the kid who felt that he didn’t belong, got in trouble, was punished severely, committed felonies, was jailed repeatedly, violated probation, is now serving a life sentence and in less than three decades has already cost taxpayers over a million dollars. Unfortunately, million dollar kids are all too common. Our response is … non existent. When is the last time you or your school or your elected officials expressed any concern about million dollar kids? So we keep producing more. And we keep paying more, over 300 billion dollars annually to address the damage inflicted by our million dollar kids. We don’t have to, as we learned at the Department of Peace Conference in Washington, DC.

Hundreds of us, students and adults, participated in a Challenge Day experience.

The first thing we learned is that all of us in the course of our lives have been impacted by bullies, snubbed by classmates, or felt like we didn’t belong because of our size, our looks, our skin color, dress, language, gender, sexual orientation, work or study habits, athletic or learning ability, religion, social class, or some other characteristic. Fortunately, most of us recovered from these negative experiences because we had the necessary support from family, friends, and faculty. Some of us didn’t, and started silently on another path to become million dollar kids.

Next we learned a way to break the isolation barrier. Challenge Day gives students a chance to put aside the normal patterns of associating with peers. In the space of one day kids can learn what we learned, that we are all vulnerable and loveable and that no one should be excluded from the group. No one need become a million dollar kid.

If Challenge Day were offered in every class in every semester and in every school isn’t it obvious that we would have many fewer kids feeling isolated and worthless, contemplating anti-social conduct, and perhaps, suicide? Isn’t it also obvious that with a U.S. Department of Peace developing, evaluating, and deploying best practices in nonviolent conflict resolution to every school district we could begin to stem the ever rising tide of violence? Is it not still true that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure? Do we really need to keep producing million dollar kids?

Peace,
Frank Goetz

Today there was this young man, who I think was a 6th grader he was so small, who gets up and very casually says I want more friends. Tony then prompts him to go and pick someone out of the group of students who he might want to get to know more and possibly become friends with. He picks someone. Then the little boy does an “If You Really Knew Me” and says “if you really knew me you would know that when I was two I ate acid soap”. The room sort of chuckled not knowing what acid soap was. Tony asked him to tell the room a little more about that, the little boy answered saying “because of that I burned my esophagus and I almost died. It did so much internal damage that I won’t develop like other people and will almost always be different”. Tony then asked the other boy standing if he would share an “If You Really Knew Me” so that the two of them might know each other better. The other boy was handed the microphone and he said “if you really knew me you would know that when I was in 9th grade I started smoking a lot and if you really knew me you would know that I really want to stop and I need help”.

The miracle for me is that these two really profound and vulnerable shares came from a Speak Out starting with “I want more friends”. It was sweet to see two males get up on a microphone and tell their peers and teachers what the need and want and that they can’t do it alone.

I just wanted to thank you Rich and Yvonne, for creating these wonderful and amazing programs, they really do make a difference. It was 4 years ago that I went to my grade 9 challenge day. I like a lot of the other teens, went in thinking, “man, a day outta school to think about emotions, bleck” because I was on a long dark downhill road of depression, almost to the point of suicidal thoughts. But as the day went on, and more and more people started to open up, I tried to follow suit, but it wasn’t until the Power Shuffle that my emotions really started to flow out. All kinds of different emotions that I had suppressed for years just spilled over the surface. Then we went back into our sharing groups, and I wanted to sit there in silence, but I had a great family leader, who asked just the right starter questions. I went into some details about how I was constantly picked on from grade 5 to that day about the shape and size of my body. And when I was telling my story, Ken our male challenge day leader was walking around, and he asked me to explain again for him. Then he took me by the hand by the hand and asked if I could come up and share my story with all the people there, and here I am panicking because I hated speaking even then, but he said it would be healthy and healing for me.

So I went up to the front of the room, and I repeated my story. Then Ken asked if there was anyone in the room that had said hurtful comments to me, if they would be willing to come up and apologize to me, and it was incredible how many people had the courage to admit that they had done something and to come up and apologize, it was life changing.

Had you two not come up with this life changing program, I honestly think I would not be here today, on this earth. The experience changed my life forever for the better and opened my eyes that there really are people who care.

So I just wanted to say thank you, cause it means the world to me, and this workshop taught me even more how to be myself and open up.

Sincerely, with love,
Taylor