The Valentine Peace Project

This page displays poems submitted by students.  

Also see featured poems, selected submissions and Paul Revere School pages.

Student Poems

Peace?! 

Peace?
peace should be something
that don't exist cuz
there is no peace..
Why did people even sign
the treaty of peace if
it doesn't really mean anything?
so why should the word peace exist?

Claudia - age 12 - Los Angeles

WHEN shall the power of peace
Become forever engrained and released
Upon the sands of time
Why is peace,
For everyone,
So hard to find?

I don’t deny
That it’s hard to remain silent
When others aggression
On you turns violent
But when you are struck
You have a choice

Student
Boise, Idaho

Feliz día de San Valentín

Hoy es San Valentín
Que tengas un día Buena/o.
También que seas feliz en San Valentín.

Javier Martínez
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy -  Los Angeles  

Vrede is fijn
Waar vrede is daar
Wil ik graag zijn
Want daar is geen oorlog
En dus geen pijn
Vrede daar wil ik
Graag zijn

Peace is good
Where there is peace
I would like to be
Because there, there is no war
And so no pain
Peace is where I would like to be

Lise (Age 9)
Amsterdam

Is it possible to look at someone
and not judge them?
Can we break this barrier
between us all?
Can we see through the scarred concrete
that conceals our identity?
Beyond that barrier
is peace.
The only way to get there
is acceptance.

Kendra from Marlborough High School  -  Los Angeles  

Roses are red, the sun is gold
I don't see another thing but love

Rosa Velazquez  -  Markham Middle School  -  Los Angeles


Encounter Life

Peace comes with being one with the creator
Let go of everything you know,
And let all become new
Treat everyday as an adventure
To touch lives of all you encounter

Let joy be with you at all times,
By seeing the beauty in all things,
And all people.

Every person has a unique gift,
So seek to never judge,
But enjoy all encounters

Student
Boise, Idaho


The Color of Peace

The color is right
The feeling is good
The words are clear
There’s no need to fear

When one tells two
Of love held so true
We all must walk
And open our grey eyes

To see a new light
A new kind of day
Find words to say
The new color of peace
And when we all talk
With intent so true
The color of peace
Is a shade lighter than blue

Jordan Rubio
Boise, ID

Peace

Though we strive for peace of mind
To be without the worries of everyday life
The struggles we encounter
The loss that greets us
The hope that keeps us going
The hardships we meet along the way
The fear that grows in the journey

The journey we are on
The one we think will please us all
Will make us all happy for eternity
The quest to find our true love
Our soul mate
We believe
Despite all the signs
That this one person will relieve us
Of all fear, hurt and pain

Despite this hope
Despite this desire and endurance
No one will ever be happy
Or have peace of mind
Without finding peace within ourselves
To find happiness inside
Learn to love one self
Be one with one self
And with this oneness you will defeat all obstacles
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

Kendall - Marlborough High School  - Los Angeles  


A Laugh

Peace begins with smiling faces

Laughter emerges from deep within
Rises through the air
Echoes off the walls
Bellows outward

Contagious

Spreads love and joy
Uplifts souls

A connection of the heart

Laughter in any language
Needs no translation

Anonymous
Nampa, Idaho


Love is hugging my brother.
I know my brother loves me
because he always hugs me
when I come home.  

James, age 5 - Pilgrim School - Los Angeles


Paths

Be here now
Understand your connection
Hold your brother while he cries
And try to breathe in his affection

To each his own and to all the same
Cause in the end we move as one
Opposing viewpoints melt together
Until difference is good and done

Cause while the paths might differ
They all lead to the same place

Student
Boise, Idaho

Define Peace

A warm afternoon at the beach
The cool air whispering past my face
The sun tiptoeing across the waves
Laying on cotton soft towels and
Giggling with a friend about
Whatever danced through our minds
I looked up to see the clouds sauntering across the sky
Like the memories you never want to forget
That is my definition of peace
The absence of confusion
Of hate
Of everything but
Serenity

Kendra - Marlborough High School - Los Angeles

Friend 

Friend that lives in the World
I want to give you this poem
For Valentine’s day.
Even if I don’t know you
I still wish you a happy
Valentine’s Day.

Esmeralda Pineda - Tercer grado 
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy - Los Angeles
 

Reflect

Light
Reflecting in her eyes
Eyes looking toward the sun
Our sun
The same sun all earthly beings look upon

Light reflecting off the ocean
Sparkling
Reflecting the light of the One Sun
The same sun that all earthly water reflects

Water flowing freely
In knows no borders
Rain drop, babbling brook, ocean wave
Washing away the separation
Uniting all rivers
One body
All people
One planet
One Sun
In Peace

Student
Nampa, Idaho
 

¡Feliz Día de San Valentín!

En el día de San Valentín se siente suave como una flor.
También huele fresco el día de San Valentín.
Se mira tan brillante cuando usted dice gracias.
Cuando usted este tranquilo se esta comportando como una buena persona.
Y le quiero decir que el día de San Valentín tiene un sabor de una caja de chocolate.

Kelly López - Primer grado
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy  -  Los Angeles

Driving down an empty highway;
Cliffs on the left, the ocean on the right.
The reflection of the sun
Lazily rolling along the waves
With flickers of a red sunset
Sporadically glittering on the surface.
A slight sigh accompanied by
A gradual turn into
A sparsely populated
Cluster of houses.
Silence, as the engine stops humming
Except for the random squawking
Of birds flying in pairs and groups.
Walking past the damaged fence,
Unaddressed by the its owner,
A cat silently patters by.
Crossing the border from
Public to private property
And progressing to a door
With a battered advertisement
Promoting an unknown industry.
A slight knock
Followed by a smile, a hug,
And a greeting.
Entering a room scattered with books,
Their context both familiar and unfamiliar,
A television is turned on
To the evening show.
A can of soda exploding
Like a bomb in the face
Collects laughter from the audience.

Evelyne from Marlborough High School

Untitled

I hope the world comes to a peace.

Alejandro – Heart of LA  (HOLA)


Do not ever think that your
small gestures of kindness are trivial;
They do no go unnoticed.
Your affections spark security for a moment,
even when life is tragic or dangerous.
I cherish your smile, your laugh,
your words and your actions.
These moments show your stunning beauty.
Your presence saves lives
as you offer true friendship
to a dark and lonely world.

Roxanne - Marlborough High School - Los Angeles

Instead of wanting roses

Or chocolates (just a few).

What I want, from the heart,

Is peace from me to you.

Anonymous - Marlborough High School - Los Angeles

I wish you
a Happy Valentines Day.

Miriam (12) - Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA)

Valentine’s Day

We celebrate love today
Red roses cloud over vision
Dark chocolates excite out taste buds
We make decorative cards
To give to our most secret admirers
We think this is the one day
To share our feelings of respect and caring
But why not the other 364 days
Let’s make everyday Valentine’s Day

Anonymous -  Marlborough School - Los Angeles

Christian from Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA)

Peace and love brings happiness.

So here's a little peace and love from me to you.

Anahi Mendoza
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy
Segundo grado 
  Alejandro Cormona (12) from Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA)

Happy Valentine's Day and peace be with you.

Untitled
Alexander, age 6 - Pilgrim School

Love is playing with my little brother.
I know my brother loves me
because he always plays with me.

Untitled
Anonymous – Marlborough School

Valentine's Day should be about community.
A banding together of people,
Looking past their differences,
Letting go of selfish notions,
Even if only for a day,
And sharing themselves with others
Who need a friend. 

Ivonne from Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA)

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

I HOPE THIS IS A SPECIAL DAY AND A SPECAL YEAR FOR YOU.

I HOPE PEOPLE SURROUND U WITH AS MUCH LOVE AND CARE

AS U DESERVE.


Love

by Alexis Polo – H.O.L.A

Is love a thing or something inside of you.
Love is something inside of a person that comes out of and expresses to other
people. Its like a epidemic that spread around
people.Love is a feeling inside of you about what you think a person and its inside
of you.  Love is a beautiful expression
about what you think and feel inside of you.
Its is a wide spread thing of every person and every person has a little light in each
every one of you and that's meaning of love.

Bernie Portocarrero (12) from Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA)
Have a Happy Valentine's Day today!

A Loving Stranger

by Monica - Marlborough School

The sun beats down on the beach umbrellas
A little girl races to catch the approaching water
But trips along the way
There is a sting of cool water against her warm body
And a hand scoops up her form
Wrapping a sandy towel around her
Soothing words from a concerned mother are of no use
She escapes and runs to her fortress
Where a foreigner handles her toys playfully
Then stuffs them with sand and plops them down again
Creating a barrier from the oncoming flood
The rushing water seeps through a crack
But halts in its tracks because of a roadblock
The boy shoes it away and the water withdraws
Backing away slowly
A weak smile appears on the girl
Admiration for a noble knight
And a friendship to last until parting
New acquaintances may not always be bad
But friendly and loving with time

Untitled
Alejandro – H.O.L.A.

What we all want is friendship, love, and hope. 

San Valentín y paz
San Valentín y paz
San Valentín y paz
Es lo que todos te deseamos
En el día de San Valentín
N.L.
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy
3rd grade


El día la paz se siente muy dulce.

El día de la paz huele como un ramo de flores.

La paz se escucha muy hermosa como si estuvieras cantando.

El sabor se siente muy rico coso una comida  de pescado.

Se mira como una cosa de algodón.

Sarai Sánchez
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy
Tercer grado

¡Feliz día de San Valentín! Te mando un abrazo.

Marily Aroche
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy
Primer grado

Untitled
Anonymous, Marlborough School

A flower can remind us of our youth, or the happiness we feel each time
we think about the magic of being alive.
A flower can show th world how simple beauty truly is, an dthat flaws are what make
the world such an awesome home.
A flower is something that can be given to anyone, a friend, neighbor, lover, or
stranger.
And like out lives, a flower is not forever, but the memory lives on.

Untitled
Eder , Vine Street Elementary, 5th grade

Peace is a place. It's like heaven when I die.
Peace is a smell. It smells like blueberry pancakes my mom makes.
Peace is a touch. It feels like when I touch my grandma's hands and face.
Peace is an animal. It's like when a bunny runs around the grass with its baby.
Peace is when my parents or my grandparents tell me I am a sweet boy.
Peace is a color. It's the color pink on a flamingo.
Peace is a sound. It sounds like when I hear the blue ocean water.
Peace is a song. It's like hearing Ray Charles on the piano.
Peace is me because I told stories to my grandma when I was three.

Where is Peace?
Karen - Marlborough School

Where is peace?
Peace is in the yellow and red
Leaves that fall in autumn
In the children who run
Wildly flailing their soft pale arms
And jump around while throwing
The leaves at one another’s rosy cheeks.

Peace is in the hearts of the skating pair
On the pond during winter
In and out, in and out
As their hearts dance to the rhythm
Of each blade gliding over the smooth ice
His arm draped over her heavy black fleece.

Peace is in the wrinkly old hands
Shaking as they struggle to support a book,
Her grandson’s favorite book,
While he stares at the vibrantly colored pictures
She speaks in a slightly broken drone
He hangs on every word
The fire cackles and pops behind them.

Untitled
Elisabeth, age 5 - Pilgrim School

Love is sharing with other people.
I know my mommy loves me because she
helps me get dressed in the morning.

Untitled
Francesca -- Marlborough School

Nothing compares to the feeling of love,
Being surrounded by people who care
Imagine a world where this feeling was everywhere,
If the kindness of others were extended to all,
Creating a community of peace, support, and joy
We can create this, it is simple enough.
We must end our isolation, and put aside our differences,
Because we are all human after all.
We can extend our love to everyone else,
And show our care to all beings,
Because soon enough this joy will spread,
And we can all live in the comfort of peace.


Gabriela Cruz – H.O.L.A.

El amor es el que nos da una vida que necesitamos para seguir adelante y saber que
alguien nos quiere en verda y no guega con nuestro amor que le tenemos atodos los
que nos rodean es mejor saber si te quieren para no seguir con ellos porque alamejor
tu no le cais bie y nsi nadie te quiere mejor miras las estrellas que ellas siempre
estan contigo y ellas si te comprenden entodo lo que estas bibiendo y los problemas
que as tenido para que alamejor te ayuden acomprenderlo mejor y no a enojos ni
agritos ni en llanto porque eso no relaciona nada es mejor saberlo con calma y con
pasiencia bueno me despido que te la pases bien y que dios te cuide mucho yque
proteja delo malo para que vivas bien y que te de muchos anos.


Untitled
Jane – Marlborough School

Peace
Earth
Alive
Compassion
Everything

Love like friends
Open your hearts
Valentine’s Day
Even more friends

Gabriela L.
Camino Nuevo Charter Academy
2rd grade

Untitled
Kat - Marlborough School

This is what Valentine’s Day is not about:
hearts, chocolate, roses
shades of pink and red
doilies, lace, and ruffles
Valentine’s Day is when a stranger
looks you in the eye and says good morning.
It’s when a driver lets you into his lane.
It’s the conversations at coffee shops, and the
extra change left in the tip jar.
It’s the smile that you aren’t aware
of as you read a book, or the tapping of your
feet as you listen to music.
It’s the bargains at the flea market and the coupons
in the newspaper.
It’s the carpool lane and the empty freeways.
Valentine’s Day can be found everywhere, everyday.
Happy Valentine’s Day!

Peace
Laura - Marlborough School

Begins with looking over the walls
That keep us from one another,
A word – or two –
That draws us together
A magnetic force
Our stories are.

Begins with flattening the barriers,
The bricks
The cement slabs
The concrete blocks

And grinding them to dust,
Collecting it all
To put into a fantastic urn
For our universal mantle.
For us to remember.
For us to remember.
How to see each other as ourselves.

Untitled
Lily, age 5 - Pilgrim School

Love is treating others the way you want to be treated.

Untitled
Mariya - Marlborough School

Peace may start with a smile
On a warm, sunny day
Or with a little compliment
Which someone may say

Soon it will grow
Like a carnation in May
And it can begin
On Valentine’s Day.

Untitled
Michelle - Marlborough School

Smile.
Let joy start from your toes and like a
Hurricane gather each cell in your body
Starting a tsunami until the wave cannot be controlled,
Overflowing with your parting of lips.

Smile.
Not for yourself but for the person
Who sees your smile.
For the person who feeds off your energy
Like a drowning Labrador gasping for air

Smile.
With each smile the sadness is forgotten.
More importantly, new emotion surfaces.
Joy.
Elation.
Happiness.
Peace.

The Hummingbird
Anonymous, Marlborough School

The tiny hummingbird always returns to the same place.
From the top of the tree in my backyard,
The vast horizon counters his fragile body,
And he sees only the bright and beautiful
Horizon ahead.

He doesn’t know of the troubles in the world,
To death, disease, and hunger he is ignorant.
He exists only for the quiet and serenity the
Blooming day brings.

At night, the world is dark.
He sees not the beauty of the horizon,
Nor the very height of his wonderful world.
He is fretful and afraid,
But never leaves his rightful position
For at the dawn of day,
He has almost given up,
But then he sees a bright and looming red and pink
Streams of gold sparkle the sky.

For a moment, all is quiet, all is well.
He is swelled with a sense of peace.
He sees me come out to witness the miracle of the new day with him,
And the peace is suspended in the air all the longer.

Many say animals feel not comfort
But when I see the hummingbird, shining in the morning’s glow,
I realize that peace is easily attained.
He has a duty and a purpose, and experiences the
Adventures of the world every day.
But I know in my heart he will always return to the top of my tree,
For the peace that that one moment brings.

Untitled
Millenia, age 6 - Pilgrim School

Love is giving your parents flowers.
I know my mom loves me because she
takes care of me.


Untitled
Morgan - Marlborough School

Here we sit in a cirle:
the Goth, the ballerina,
the smart aleck, the actress,
the drummer, the introvert.

We sit in a circle sharing stories,
answering questions
each of us wildly different.
A pinch of anger and a dash of laughter,
a drop of regret and a splash of happiness,
a spoonful of noise and a sprinkling of silence.

None of us is sure how we ended up here together,
Sharing who we are with these strangers,
But it feels right.

Untitled
Stefanie - Marlborough School

If I could give you one thing in this world,
It would be the ability to see yourself as others see you.
That way, you would realize what a truly amazing person you are.

Untitled
6th Grade Class

With so much anger near and far,
It's hard to tell just who we are.

We need to be able to get along,
And link our hands and sing a song.

The melody's message should be of love,
Sent on the wing of a peacful dove.

Untitled
Tess – Marlborough School

L: Life in peace. Millions of people embracing each other’s differences,
each other’s imperfections.
O: Open minds, open hearts. The ability to let those who care for you into the
deepest parts of your soul.
V: Vast kindness. Not a single feeling of anger, remorse, jealousy, grief.
E: Everyone in harmony. A perfect balance --- That is true love.

Untitled
Tyrel, Vine Street Elementary, 5th grade

Peace is a place. It's like a quiet island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
Peace is a smell. It smells like my grandma's cooking after church on Sundays.
Peace is an animal. It's like a horse running and getting blown by the wind.
Peace is when someone tells me, "You're a great kid!"
Peace is my favorite time of day. It's like walking home from school.
Peace is a color. It's like the color of the horizon.
Peace is a sound. It sounds like when my little brother calls my name.
Peace is a song. It's like hearing my mom sing my little brother to sleep.
Peace is me because I love to help people with their problems.

Untitled
Victor – Marlborough High School

Valentine's Day
a flower in hand grows
from the heart.

Untitled
Yasmine, age 5 - Pilgrim School

Love is caring about each other. If someone gets hurt, you get them a
band-aid.

Untitled
Zoe - Marlborough School

Peace
Does not need a holiday
Because it happens everyday
Everyday it is needed
Everyday it is shown
Everyday it is given
Everyday it is grown
And today is the day
Where I give to you

FOREVER HERE
Mr. Small
Markham Middle School

We are forever here and forever there
In a moment, in a glance, in a stare.
We take it slow, but it goes so fast
Peace and love must always last.

PEACE
Abelardo Ruiz
Markham Middle School- {Room 48}

Peace is to like others, not to hate, but to share.
Love is to feel warm and tender,
liking deep inside for a person or family
Also to help or by being kind and sharing and expressing your feelings

LOVE FROM ABOVE
Raysean Rivera
Markham Middle School- {Room 48}

Love is not funny it's sweet like honey
You don't buy love with money
You don't play with love because
it will hit you from above

Laura from Marlborough High School

This is a day
That has become popular for the guilt when you forget to buy that $6 sparkly card
For imposing calories from expensive chocolate
And for some, the realization of loneliness.

But why?
Can’t this be a day to celebrate love, life and friendship?

Perhaps today is a day to search for peace. Wholeness.
But how can we do that when the world is filled with so much hate
And so much violence?

We NEED to accept
Religion
Race
Culture
Beliefs other than our own.

Maybe you tell yourself that you are already tolerant.
Maybe you need to try a little harder.

This poem isn’t here to make you feel guilty,
But to make you stop and think about the world around us.
So that maybe, one day,
We can enjoy
A day where we appreciate some chocolate, or a homemade card.


Peace
By Hannah from Marlborough High School

As people meld and shed
their shell of stiff formality
as people leave
this cycle of retaliation
The nature of humanity shall rear its head
and proclaim
with blunt defiance
Liberties are attainable,
although hidden indefinitely,
they will escape the chains
that indefinitely bind them
As pride and hatred leave
the sun will smile

Box of Chocolates
By Chelsea from Marlborough High School 

Love;
simply an untouched
idealized box of mouth-watering
chocolates
ignored on the cold kitchen tile,
no different from those found
in the chocolate store on
the corner,
but these chocolates,
set aside from a world
embedded with
unrealistic truths,
are packed with enough
emotion that suddenly
the chocolates symbolize
something lost,
something gained,
something so personal
tears fill your eyes.
And at that moment one forgets
that these once two dimensional
candies actually made
you smile.

Pangea

No one on Earth
but those with scales and feathers
can remember Pangea.
When all around
was a public affair
and integration was
a way of life
not just an amendment.
The curtain of life was drawn wide open
revealing a humble
transcontinental love
stretching from one tip to the other
combined to the fullest.
Then we came along.
With opposable thumbs
and our sober calculation minds
and Pangea
assiduously began drifting away
Until each piece was its own
calling to it's limbs in other waters.
Our campaigns of society can never reverse
and address
Pangea.
What us primates
will never know.

Maddy - Marlborough High School - Los Angeles