2007 SECOND PLACE

HAPPINESS EQUALS LOVE & LOVE EQUALS PEACE
Sean Dowgray
16 years old, Kansas

Peace is not prejudice, it does not judge nor hate
But it is calm, open and waiting,
Waiting for everyone to grasp onto it.

And this peace can show the way
But you must trust it
Many search for peace like a pirate searches for gold,
But it is not about searching,
Because this peace has already been found

It's in you, just as it is in me,
Do not search, but recognize that it is there,
Let it guide you in its path
For what we know not, it will show
And this peace, it rests inside our soul,
But we must open the door
It has no lock, nor no key
But this peace waits in patience for you to call on thee.

Peace is your friend, as it is to us all
So what about peace?
Grow up, be a kid, because happiness is the way to love
And through that love is the knowledge of peace
And with that peace, the world can change

No more families in distress over their love ones
So far away fighting for what they believe
But what is we did not fight?
What if we all opened that door?

That door where peace lies
And we called on it to show us the way
No more guns, armor, or fear of death
Peace can help us put that to rest
Because war is not happy, it has no mercy
It lacks what we can gain,
So why settle for war when there's something else so close inside of us?
Something that is brilliant, yet does not boast
This is God's gift
So take that road, go that way
And hopefully we'll all end up at destination PEACE someday.