this is what matters to him

” Peace Tiles is a growing network of people using the arts to inspire social change. Peace Tiles are being used to brighten the spotlight on issues, raise funds to support causes, and inspire hope in communities around the world, .. ” http://peacetiles.mixedmedia.us/

By Frerieke van Bree

Ingredients:

50 bright COSAT students, 50 beautiful visions of what matters to them, lots of paint, scissors, magazines,..

Additional tools:

Heat! (oeh what a cold day and room), Anasuya and Fre for the explanations and fun, photo camera’s, …and whatever the students brought with them (from sand, to beats, to leaves, to fabric) and lots of plastic bags to keep the mess out of this examination hall.

The results?

50 very creative and diverse Peace Tiles! 50 very enlightened students! and…. a mess …haha of course

What else?

After the session we put all the Tiles together and asked the students which two tiles would represent them (=all students) best. That was such a fun exercise. It really made them feel as “being one”. Everybody was very energetic when they finally agreed on the two. After their decision we announced that those chosen two tiles will be presented at the school assembly next week. Exciting.

And now?

Next is to create a mural with the tiles, preferable somewhere in the community, to spread their inspiring messages not only here, online, but also directly to the people the students care about.

That was fun!

Please keep on posting your comments to the students here on the site. They check in  here quite often and really appreciate your words!

By Lwazi Dyantyi

What matters to me is my friends and me.

The reason why I say that my life matters to me is that I have been and still going through a lot of painful things alone. When my mother passed away I was lost because she was my guider and adviser. My father is a Junkie and he don’t care about me and he says that I must be “INDEPENDENT” to him. That’s very painful to be told by the only parent you are left with. I know that good and bad times come and go so it’s part of life. Now I have to make and take positive things and choices of my life. I love myself no matter what the situation is I am only me NOBODY ELSE.

Many of my friends are fortunate than me they still have both of their parents. They are given everything that they want at any time than me. I once had o low self esteem because of the situation I was facing. I advice them to LOVE,CARE&RESPECT them while they still have them both. I have seen that most of the youngster get LOST and start to be CORRUPT when one or both of their parents died. I don’t want my friends to be like that when that time comes in their lives. I try by all means to make or prepare them that PATH when that time came. I love my friends very much and I care for them.

Yes in life there are GOOD and BAD times but I am glad that that time came when I loved GOD because he is my savior. I love myself no matter what the situation is because they are making me to be a STRONG and BRAVE man in my future. I LOVE MYSELF VERY MUCH THANK YOU.

NOTE BY Fre: for more pictures that the students have taken, please visit our gallery

By Frerieke van Bree

Nwabisa Dyonashe is a 15 year old South African girl who lives in Township Khayelitsha near Cape Town. She is a 10th grade student of COSAT (Center of science and Technology). She is one of our inspiring students of the art and leadership initiative that Anasuya and I started at the school.

What inspires me so much about these students is their willingness to learn, to make a difference, to be great. The difficulties that a lot of them have to face on a day to day base are enormous. The responsibilities those 15 year olds have to take, go way beyond what I could have imagined when i was 15. Yes my teenage years were not always the greatest, but i start appreciating all opportunities i had more an more by seeing those students here in Khayelitsha apreciate what they have got.

Enjoy this short, but very powerful text of Nwabisa, together with the pictures she took of her house and family:

By Nwabisa Dyonashe

I live with my grandmother with my brother and sister. She is a pensioner so she doesn’t have enough money for buying everything in the house. So I have committed myself to working in a salon every Saturday and Sunday to help her. I help her by buying things that are finished and buy things that are needed in school and maybe a pair of shoes for either my brother or sister. Doing this for my family really matters to me. I don’t feel like people have neglected us. I just know it’s my life and I am living it. And I don’t expect people to feel sorry for me.

By Frerieke van Bree

Iran Masebeni is a 15 year old South African boy who lives in Township Khayelitsha near Cape Town. He is a 10th grade student of COSAT (Center of science and Technology). He is one of our inspiring students of the art and leadership initiative that Anasuya and I started at the school.

With this Love to the World initiative we really want to create a space where anybody can make a difference and inspire others to do so. This site is not about us ( Anasuya and me), but is an invitation for anybody to get involved.

Last week we had a great visitor, Raquel (from New York) who was so inspired back home after seeing the videos of the COSAT students online.. she wanted to get to know those students and offer some of her leadership skills. Leadership through dance. She also gave the students the assignment to write down what really matters to them and have them present this in front of their fellow students. Raquel, you were great, please share your own story with us!

Iran’s story will be the first one that we’ll share with you. The text goes together with the photographs that Iran took of his house. (one of the components that i use in my classes is photography. 6 camera’s go round. Each student gets an opportunity to show the class what matters to them in pictures.)

Please be inspired by this young mans passions:

By Iran Masebeni

What matters to me is the fact that I want South Africa to change for the good. I want blacks to be equal to whites to have same standards of living, no blacks or whites in the street. I lost both my parents when I was so young. This matters to me because I am a black person, a young South African that is growing up. Every day I think how is South Africa going to be in the future, who  is leading. Is it going to be the whites again who are leading our country? If so, why did our ancestors then fight for us, why did they waste their time, ruined their lives, fought till dead. Did they fight so that we will stay in shadows under fear, live in the streets?

I want us black people to be the leaders of tomorrow. I want us to live where ever we choose, drive whatever car we choose to drive. I don’t want us to be like whites lets do our thing. Let’s dance to our rhythm.

I want us to be us. Live up to our ancestors. Why i say this is because if it is raining, we don’t sleep because our houses are flooded.

I say if living in the shacks is the style of South Africa, the SO BE IT , amen. Let us all live in shacks, blacks and whites.

So what I am saying is that i want Equality

I want us to live in an extraordinary country.