SMS Alert : "Peace, Man! :p"
(Original)

Yunitha Ratnadilla T. A. K.
(Age 14, Indonesia)
SMP N 8 Yogyakarta

As people know, school should be the most comfortable place to develop our knowledge and gain as much as academic and social experiences in our youth. That is the ideal idea. But in fact, recently, schools are no longer a comfortable place to study in. Why? Because its function has already changed. Not only becoming an education source, but now it also has become a place that I call a battle field. Why I said so?

School is a battle field because the atmosphere of competition is all around. The competition that I mean here is not only about the subjects mark's race between friends, but it is more about the competition of the prestigious life. Doing a social relationship and making friends in my school mean that we have to join a gang, such as in clever students communities, rich students clubs, nerds, cheerleaders, and so on. Majority and minority are the main issue. Until now, this condition has trapped all students -including me- to live everyday with this kind of "rule".

This problem makes me sometimes feel really uncomfortable to be in school because I can not find any peace there. According to my observation, gangs, clubs, groups, of course have the potential to create disputes and jealousy. I believe so because I have ever been in that condition and here is the story:

In my class, the gender dispute often comes up. Usually, the dispute happens between boys and girls. The reason why this could be happened mostly because of a simple misunderstanding or egoism. One problem such as a personal humiliation which is intended to be a joke could be a source of dispute that creates an inter-gendered  communication deadlock in my class. When we have this problem, the atmosphere of my class would likely be as cold as Himalaya or as silent as a cemetery. It is true.  

Seeing this condition was a heartbreaking moment for me because deep down in my heart I want to be neutral. I want to be fair. I want to listen both sides and still make friends with my boy and girl friends. Feeling tired of this, I was searching for any way to stop this chilling atmosphere. And suddenly I got an idea!! I got this idea soon after I observe that almost my entire classmates own cell phones.

Soon after school, I picked my cell phone and started to write a SMS and sent it to all of my classmates in grade 8-2, with a short message "to all friends that I love: PEACE MAN!(8_2). For me it was a trial and error moment because I had no ability to predict what would happen tomorrow morning in my class. Would there be another madness or what? I even wasn't able to sleep that night!!

In the next morning, with a shaking knee and cold hand, I walked into the class. Along the way that I passed, my mind wildly imagined about what happen inside my class. But when I arrived in front of its door, I was wondered by the situation. You know what? Avice, the boys' gang's leader and Christine, the girls' gang's leader were making a conversation. But this time was not a dispute. They were talking nicely with smiles and laughter. The same things also happened to the rest of the class. They were chatting together. What's happen?

Soon after I was approached by Avice, Christine and the rest of the class. They all thanked me for the SMS that I had sent. They said that by the time they receive the SMS, they soon realized that the disputes had torn our class apart. They said no one ever tell them about it before. No one had the courage to remind them that we, as a whole class, actually in love and care upon each other. They also said that they actually had been missing the feeling of togetherness after all.

That day for me was a magical day. Because it was the moment when I had the opportunity to gain my dream, which is creating peace in my own environment. Starting by my closest environment: friends. I never imagine that technology could help me to spread the seed of peace to my friends.

Taking the advantage from my experience, I really wish that other teens in the world would like to do the same thing like me: using the benefit of technology to break the communication deadlock among the inter-friends disputes. If we can do this, I believe that the seed of peace would grow. And one day we will be able to see the beauty of the peace-flower that we have been waiting to be harvested. Now, just take your cell phone and send this message to the people that you actually love:

 "Peace, Man! :p"