What triggered my awareness of “peace” was an exploratory study on the SDGs at elementary school.
In my team, we discussed what we could do to help people who have diseases that can be cured but cannot be treated due to poverty and social conditions.
We learned that vaccines can be made from PET bottle caps, so we started by asking all students to bring their own PET bottle caps to the school for collection.
With the cooperation of many people, we were able to create vaccines for 26 people from the plastic bottle caps we collected.
I was moved by the fact that we could save 26 lives just by collecting PET bottle caps, and learned the importance of starting small.
I went from Shitennoji Elementary School to Shitennoji Junior High School. Shitennoji Gakuen provides education based on the spirit of Buddhism, in which the “spirit of harmony” is an important part of the education.
Because of this learning, teachers and all the students actively cooperated in the collection. I still remember how happy I was.
In addition, my mother was a member of the parents’ chorus club at the elementary school, which led me to join the “Taishi Chorus,” a chorus group active at the elementary school, when I was in the third grade.
In this chorus, parents and children sometimes sang the same songs. Even now, I sometimes sing with my mother at home.
I was so absorbed in the chorus that I joined the chorus club in junior high school as well. I practice every day in order to perform in many regular concerts and competitions.
My chorus advisor told me, “Each part, such as soprano and alto, sings while listening to the other parts and thinking of each other. I was very impressed by the words of our advisor: “Each part, such as soprano and alto, sings while listening to and caring for the other parts.
I believe that the singing voice has the power to move people and convey a message of peace.
This is why I came up with the idea of a “peace chorus. Peace, in my opinion, means “people caring for each other. A chorus is not only satisfied with its own singing voice, but it becomes better when each part is considerate of the other parts.
A “peace chorus” is a group of people singing together freely, in the language of their choice, in the parts of their choice, to sing a song.
Through my experience in the chorus club, I know the joy, beauty, and emotion that comes from singing a song together.
I want to share the excitement with people all over the world, and to join our voices together while caring for each other.
I would like to realize the day when we can play songs while respecting each other’s freedom and wishing for peace.
Thank you very much.