Marya Mann : Blog : How To Love A Child: Take A Leap Of Faith

How to Love a Child: Take a Leap of Faith

Aloha Kakou! Love to us All!

“In a big scary confusing world, you make me feel safe,” said Paul, a 10-year-old child. Then he wrapped both arms around me in a big bear hug. He had just completed a unique painting playshop with ArtWavEs, one that started with balancing energy routines, led to students learning and embodying the joy and power of painting for peace, and ended with beautiful works of Peace Art for inner peace, outer peace, and world peace.

The outer world that frightened young Paul reminded him of hunger, poverty, violence, home insecurity, and disempowerment. What nourished him in the ArtWavEs class was a sense of safety, healthy food, and time to feel, express, and integrate both inner and outer experiences. And then, after soothing and redirecting the vital life energy inside his own body, mind, and spirit, instead of feeling helpless, he had a powerful new resource in knowing how to calm his nervous system life force.

I had prepared my whole life to be a safe space for children to flourish and reignite their creativity. His words, “You make me feel safe,” were an affirmation in part but actually, he was growing an inner safe space. He had always had a Peace Gene inside him. We had taught him how Peace Arts turned that life-affirming heritage on.

When we started ArtWavEs, we took a leap of faith. Can you take a leap of faith now too?

We predicted many of the positive changes we’ve seen in thousands of children. We savor the moments when they discover their energy bodies. It’s like a lantern is lit inside them when they first feel the new emotions of wonder, glee, gratitude, and self-esteem. Their authentic being starts to shine and well-being flows through them.

As they awaken and discipline their creative energy, there’s an immediate quantum leap win for everyone. They win the empowerment of choosing Peace. In the state of Peace, they make Peace Flags and Banners for themselves and also for others, to feel empathy for others and declare their intention for a world that works for everyone. Their families and schools win by sharing a world where there is less trauma and more happiness. The larger world wins because by painting their harmonious energies into the fabric of the Peace Flags, the ripple effect of their presence shifts the social and environmental dynamics toward positive futures.

The Ripple Effect

The children enjoy knowing about the ripple effect, and how – no matter how hard things are – things can improve through the ripple effect of their intentions, thoughts, and actions. Waving in a brisk wind, silk flags painted by students, adults, and families cast their peaceful intentions on the land and people in the air around them. They spread much more than colors and the shapes of ocean reefs, mountains, families picnicking, math (no kidding), playful imaginary creatures, fertile taro fields, flowers, houses, mermaids, dolphin, suns and moons, cats and dogs, stars and starfish.

They express unconditional love and hope that humanity can – and will — overcome the unworkable mechanisms of war.

We Make Peace by Making Peace Flags.

We envisioned this could be very successful, for when the world had finally grown so weary of war, and when enough understood that no one really wins a war, the Peace Flag project would spread like wildflowers.

Well, our prayers are being answered. That time has come. The seeds of the Peace Arts program consist of a new, amazing website built by Lara Printz, an outreach effort by the indominable Susan Minor, and the extraordinary works of volunteers like Maureen Langberg, Jan Waskom, and Cindy Avinger. Planted, watered, and drenched in Sunshine and Love, AWE wildflowers are growing, thriving, and overflowing in new corners of the globe.

What we did not envision was how the accelerating hunger for peace would translate into new requests for peace flags, Peace Arts workshops, and new teacher trainings would come so suddenly.

With plans for three new Hawaii workshops and appeals for two more, with AWE organizing in Utah and Illinois, and with requests for training coming from the US Mainland, Uganda, and potentially, Lebanon, it is essential to fulfill our 2024 Winter-Spring Budget Campaign to meet the growing need.

We are requesting $7900 for these projects now, to come closer to our overall goal of $22,000 this year. Compared to the US Department of Defense 2025 budget request of $849.8 billion, which will be funded by your tax dollars, this is a tiny amount, and yet it can have an enormous impact.

The Request: Take a Leap of Faith

Please help in any amount to help us prepare and serve meals; to teach more children the powers of intentional creativity and kindness; to put organizational, production, grant, and fundraising systems into place; to produce more Peace Flags; to train teachers to be Peace Arts Guides who can meet the increasing demand; to enhance the volunteer experience; to onboard new AWE Board members; and to appropriately package and send peace banners and flags to uplift children and families in conflicted zones.

Thank you so much for joining us in this exciting experience. Thank you for opening your heart as well as your pocketbook to help the leaders of tomorrow create the world they deserve, a world focused on a peaceful future, not the unskillful battles and wounds from the past.

Please share this email with others who might resonate with the story of ArtWavEs, want to participate in our AWE movement, and want to achieve this growing dream of Peace with us!

More dollars mean more teachers means more students who are making Peace Flags and creating peace on Earth. It’s as simple as that.

Can you offer $200, $500, $1,000,or more to boost funding for Current Workshops and Teacher Training and Development? No gift is too small or too large. We are at a critical moment, and your support, participation, and generosity will sustain us.

With deep Gratitude, Love, and Respect for All Who Choose Peace
Marya for ArtWavEs

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Donate by Check: Send to Pacific ArtWavEs, P. O. Box 5154, Kailua-Kona HI 96745
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’A ‘ohe hana nuike alu ‘ia.
“No task is too big when done together by all.”