I walked in to the Key Arena overwhelmed by the amount of youth that flooded in next to me. Thousands of eager students, ranging from elementary school to high school sat in their seats waiting for the presentation to begin. I had never before seen so many people, gathered in one space to listen to something so great and meaningful.

As I walked past all the different sections, I was able to speak to a few different schools. I was very interested in young children and their teachers. I couldn't believe the amount of elementary school children that were sitting on the edge of their seat, waiting to hear about such a complex subject. It was amazing and inspiring to know that students so young were being educated on such a global and universal idea.

Donna Schwendeman from Gatewood Elementary School explained that their students have been exploring what their passions are in life and what compassion means to them in the classroom. I was able to speak to a shy six year old boy who had a hard time explaining a concrete definition, but when asked by his teacher what he drew in class to show compassion, he began to describe his father. His father was building a house for someone who needed one and the boy described himself being compassionate by giving food to those that are hungry. As the boy was finishing up his description, a little girl sitting next to him had created a definition that inspired me. "Compassion means to help someone suffering, like if they are crying and you get them help, like a Band-Aid." Such a simple definition but the fact that a six year old was able to confidently explain such a vague term was hopeful and inspiring.

Another teacher, Donna Amira, had gotten the 388 students at Dunlap Elementary School to make "quilts of kindness" and had the kids preform an act of kindness to go along with it. These teachers were such an inspiration. They were able to get such young students to understand and become enthusiastic about this topic.

I couldn't help but walk away with a smile after talking to all of these schools. Their lessons of compassion in school had created an overwhelming positive message and energy that I knew the students would carry with them outside of the classroom. And as the Dali Lama had said, the children are the future. We are the future of peace and this is the perfect step we need to take to make sure it happens.

Lauren Lee

The Youth Voice blogging/reporting team consists of students from Seattle/Bellevue area high schools and organizations who've been given the unique opportunity to report about the 5-day Seeds of Compassion events featuring the Dalai Lama with photos, videos and blogs.

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