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Springtime of
Peace
By
Marina Marrazzi, Italy
The students of
Figino Serenza-Novedrate, a public secondary school in the
province of Como, Italy, have recently begun wearing T-shirts
printed with the message "Only diamonds can polish
diamonds." These words signify the positive influence
that great minds have on other minds, and this phrase is now
the slogan of an educational and cultural movement that has
come to be known as "The Springtime of Peace."
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Marita
Bombardieri (right) introducing the
"diamonds" project
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Until several
years ago, Figino Serenza-Novedrate was considered a
"problem school." Many of the conflicts and tensions
that occurred in its classrooms were the result of unresolved
conflicts in the community--conflicts that typically arise
whenever a small village attempts to assimilate an influx of
immigrants. However, following a process of transformation, it
is now known as the "School of the Springtime of
Peace."
The
Beginning of a Revolution
So how did this miniature revolution begin? "The starting
point was my wish for people to show their best side,"
says Marita Bombardieri, the school's principal and an
SGI-Italy member. "My dream has always been for the
students to develop their potential and express their talents
and abilities. I have always strongly believed that through my
passion for teaching I could kindle passion in my students.
'Springtime of Peace' was born from my wish to help the people
in my environment flourish just the way they are--rather than
the way I would like them to be."
"Springtime of Peace" began as a series of events
that provided students with the opportunity to learn and put
their learning into practice. It featured a series of
conferences called "How Diamonds Can Polish
Diamonds" during which representatives of the Montessori,
Steiner and Soka schools exchanged viewpoints and ideas on the
theory and practice of education. Also, during March and
April, university professors and politicians lectured to
students on "Masters of Peace," great pacifists and
peacemakers such as Gandhi, Rigoberta Menchu, Nelson Mandela
and the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo.
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Students
wearing "diamond" T-shirts
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Numerous other
events were also held, such as the dedication of a room to
three of the school's former students who died in 1993 while
on a humanitarian mission to Bosnia. And finally, a convention
for peace was held beginning with a race from the school to
the local park. As they went along, the students gathered
groups of children who were waiting along the roadside and led
them to the convention site. When promoting these events,
students wearing "diamond" T-shirts went around the
village, calling upon other students and their parents to
participate.
Transformation
Marita Bombardieri says, "'Springtime of Peace' is the
result of many years of hard work." She recalls,
"When I served as principal of this school from 1980 to
1988, I tried, together with the teachers and parents, to
build something new, to alter--even a little bit--the culture
of surrender, impotence and unhappiness that prevailed at that
time. We saw a few positive signs of change, but then strong
pessimism took control again. The desire to flourish--the wish
I had for my own happiness and the happiness of the people
around me--was constantly blocked. So I began to look for a
different path. The moment I encountered Nichiren Buddhism I
started to believe that the objective of Buddhist
practice--for humankind to become happy--could be achieved.
With this new confidence I began to pray that my school would
become a happy school, and that our village would become a
happy village.
"A passage in Daisaku Ikeda's work The Human
Revolution served as my guideline from the very beginning
of my Buddhist practice: it says that '. . . a human
revolution in just a single individual can help achieve a
change in the destiny of a nation--and, furthermore, can even
bring about a change in the destiny of all humankind.' I found
that statement riveting: If it is possible to change a nation
and the whole world, I told myself, it must also be possible
to transform our small village. That was my challenge."
Creators
of Value
Tina Scarcella, an English teacher who has worked at the
school for 20 years, describes how the movement began.
"We began to create workshops for the students, in
particular for those students who had learning problems and
who lacked cultural stimulation. We wanted to give them the
opportunity to develop their manual skills, so we offered
carpentry workshops facilitated by retired carpenters who
taught the children for free. A few years ago we began with
the motto 'creators of value.' This motto, shared with us by
our principal, forms the basis of the educational philosophy
of Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, the first president of the Soka
Gakkai. In this concept I rediscovered the spirit of education
that I have always been trying to embody in my teaching."
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Celebrating
the start of "school revolution" at
Figino Serenza-Novedrate
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Sabatino
Sebastianelli, a member of the school council whose two
daughters attend the school, says that he believes it is
crucial for parents to be active participants, not merely
spectators, in their children's education. "If people are
just spectators, nothing will change," he states. "I
think that if we were to repeat the Springtime of Peace
initiative today, far fewer people would be spectators and
many more would be participants. I think that my participation
has had a positive influence on my daughters because it gives
them as a point of reference a parent who is always on the
front line. This, I believe, serves as a stimulus for them to
make their own personal commitments."
The president of the school council, Elisa Cribioli, adds:
"Our project has been truly great, and I am sure that it
will continue to produce positive effects. Over the years, the
way in which local residents perceive this school has changed
significantly. Only a few years ago, the school in the nearby
town of Cantu was considered to be the school of the 'elite,'
and many people preferred it. Today, the situation is exactly
the opposite: our school is perceived as highly desirable.
This experience has shown that it is possible to discover and
develop individual potential. I am referring, in particular,
to the convention for peace, the final event of our
initiative: it emphatically demonstrated that peace can be
created not only through words but also through actions and
feelings of joy. We must demonstrate peace, first of all
inside ourselves and then outside in our interactions with
others."
A
Culture of Hope
Marita Bombardieri is pleased with the transformation her
school has undergone: "From pedagogic and methodological
viewpoints, the results are clearly visible: all of the
teachers in our school have become more confident and
creative. Happiness makes people creative. And in parallel
with the changes in the teachers, the students have also
become more productive, without even realizing it.
"As an antidote to the culture of impotence, we tried to
introduce a culture of hope. To have hope means to look for
'mentors,' in other words, to seek guides, rather than to
remain isolated and get lost in the labyrinth.
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A
banner showing "Springtime of Peace"
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"The
following realizations will undoubtedly remain in the
students' lives: that it is better to seek relationships
rather than loneliness; that happiness can be found in human
relationships--never in isolation; that true happiness is
found in universality, in the network that links everything
together.
"I now know that the power of life is limitless and that
Buddhism offers the potential for unlimited growth. I am
continually amazed at how a change in just a single individual
can have an effect on so many people. This shows the
transformative power of human relationships."
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