On March 19, 2003, President George W. Bush gazed into a camera from behind his Oval Office desk and told the American people we were going to war with Iraq. We’ve been fighting ever since. Which means an entire generation of children has grown up knowing only a world in which the United States is at war. As we close out a decade of conflict, we couldn’t help but wonder what peace means to those children who’ve only ever known an embattled country. So we asked them.

“Peace means if you’re mad, you need to keep calm.”
—Bryan Godines, 4th grade, Cheltenham Elementary School

5280 December 2013
More From The Issue

“What peace means to me is that people won’t be involved in war or fighting. It is good to live in peace so you can be safe and won’t have to worry about anything. A peaceful world is a world without violence or guns.”
—Judith Pacheco, 4th grade, Horace Mann Middle School

“A peaceful world would be when everyone is helping each other through tough situations and not fighting about stuff. We can create a more peaceful community by having a nice community dinner so people can get together and find solutions to problems. We can talk and laugh together like a real family would, because everyone in the world is part of one large family.”
—Perla Lopez, 5th grade, Trevista at Horace Mann ECE-8 School

“Peace means love.”
—Anthony Fresquez, 4th grade, Cheltenham Elementary School

“Peace means to be honest and kind. It means to be comforting, not to be one who wants war. Peace has to be pondered, to be thought of as something that we want to be given. It has to be like a woodpecker and a tree, like us and the world, bonding a creature to its home.”
—Spencer Tanenholtz, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“Peace is a place where there’s no bullying.”
—Suriana Mendez-Chan, 4th grade, Cheltenham Elementary School

“Peace means going to bed at night and feeling safe and good. It means living your life freely,
serenely, and without worry for yourself and others. Peace is feeling calm in your heart.”
—Everett Watterson, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“The most peaceful thing for me to do is to meditate.”
—Ezekiel Harris, 3rd grade, Valdez Elementary School

“To me peace is soothing, and joyful. Like drinking a glass of tea. You don’t have to worry, like a snow day, you can just rest. No more tears of lost young ones or elders. No more pain or suffering. No more worrying, like a soft melody, like love and joy.”
—Michael Borne, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“Peace is getting along with each other instead of fighting. This kind of peace is not like a piece of cake.”
—Quinn Kennedy, 3rd grade, Valdez Elementary School

5280.com Exclusive: Click to read more thoughts on peace from Colorado’s youth.

“Peace means when somebody is not getting along, they find a way to communicate and not fight.”

—Damien Melendrez, 4th, Cheltenham Elementary School

“Peace means to support.”

—Arlet Jurado-Lugo, 4th, Cheltenham Elementary School

“Peace is a walk through nature. It’s a calm piece of music. Peace is two different cultures, living together as one. Peace is equal. Peace is fair. Peace is a world without war. And anyone can make peace, including you and me.”

—Gwenyth Aggeler, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“Peace means that there are no wars, squabbles, or arguments. Peace is a calm, serene feeling that warms you up on a cold night.”

—Sarah Mitchell, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“When I think of peace the first thing that pops into my mind is equality. I think of there being no wars, no arguing, and friendly happy people with equal rights. Peace can be calm and joyful. With peace everyone in the world would be laughing instead of hiding, hugging instead of hitting, and loving instead of hating.”

—Megan Goforth-Harmon, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“What peace means to me is serenity. Peace means going to bed at night and feeling safe and good. It means living your life freely, serenely, and without worry for yourself and others. Peace is about not having worries that you will never see people who are dear to you again. Peace is feeling calm in your heart.”

—Everett Watterson, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“Peace is a utopia we cannot reach, we cannot find. The world cannot be perfect, but we can try. We can try to make world peace, instead of trapping ourselves up and never listening to what is happening in the world.”

—Margalit Goldberg, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“Peace to me means to understand one another. I believe that a lot of wars and fights start with a lack of empathy. If people don’t understand one another it makes it extremely hard to get along with people whether that understand a language or a religion if you understand them then there will be peace.”

—Kate Stewart, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“To me peace is simply happiness. It means looking in the newspaper and not seeing headlines that feature violence or war. It means people agreeing rather than fighting. I think peace also means being calm and having patience with others.”

—Natalia Maahs, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School

“To me, peace is a breeze of fresh air blowing against my face as I read a good book in my lawn. Peace is the smell and sounds of a forest as I go on a hike. Peace is the calm and quiet of my house after a long day of school.

—Zack Biggs, 5th grade, Carson Elementary School