We took a quick visit this morning to the Sri Chinmoy peace plaques in Walpole, where we met Dave and Michael to send us on our way. We were also blessed with yet another rainbow to send us on our way.
Walpole was dedicated as a Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossom Town in 2013 when the Peace Run visited.
This olive tree that was planted as a Sri Chinmoy Peace Tree.
We were blessed with the opportunity to run with a local runner Xavier Kolan. Xavier did everything straight from the heart- his greeting, his conversation and even his running. If we had our way, he would be our newest permanent team member. But Nanâ, his mom, said it was time to head back to tend to his brother and other activities. What a wonderful family! Thank you for sharing your peace with us on this fine morning.
Spectacular rainbows have been a regular feature over the past fews weeks here. We all love to see them, but some of us aren't so keen on the inevitable rain that they often accompany!
Michael, who we met at our meeting yesterday does an outstanding job of keeping the roads near Walpole litter free, so we enjoyed a beautiful run through the forest with no rubbish in sight.
More stunning running through the lush forests of Walpole.
East Manjimup Primary greeted us with open arms and open hearts. 250 smiling well behaved intelligent children participated fully in our ceremony.
Principal Michael Smith was very keen on the Peace Run as this was his second encounter. We had visited a school he used to work at in recent years, and the meeting inspired him to enthusiastically have us do our program at East Manjimup Primary. He thanked us with a very kind endorsement, saying “the work your are doing is admirable and much needed."
As we were about to make our exit, I witnessed a teacher in front of a big world map on the school grounds asking the children point out the country that was on their Peace Run card. ( A nice little momento we give the children with a photo of runner in some country around the world on one side and our website on the other so they can continue to follow our adventures. ) It was great to see some of our curriculum in action!
Our second school of the day was Manjimup Primary School.
The children were waiting for us outside.
Teekhnata had the honour of leading the team into the school, high-fiving the kids as we ran. We were kindly welcomed by the principal Damian Lloyd.
The children had covered their meeting area in peace artwork and messages they had created to welcome us.
A great message was on the back of their uniforms!
I love how excited the students are about guessing our countries. There always seems to be one in the group who is a geography whiz.
We gave the teachers some appreciation for their hard work and asked them to do a lap for peace. They were so enthusiastic that they kept running for 3 laps.
We presented our certificate of appreciation and 2 students read Sri Chinmoy’s poem together in complete harmony. How appropriate!
We also had the special treat of running outside with the kids. Let’s use up some of that youthful energy.
In the final moments a beautiful and full rainbow emerged to bless our meeting.
Then we drove to get to our meeting at Nannup High School. Despite the name, most of the children were primary students; the school catered to all ages.
Always an exciting moment!
Team C started our running at Manjimup, 37km out of Bridgetown. The runners took shorter stints of 3km to start with in order to get through the miles quickly. The verdant, bucolic scenery inspired us. Thankfully the rain left us alone today, and the weather was fine.
Following this, we briefly explored One Tree Bridge in the forest. Unfortunately our team drone took an unexpected dip in the creek. We hope that it recovers.
Following this, we attended the Sri Chinmoy Peace Birds exhibit at Manjimup Art Gallery. We were greeted by Shire President Donelle Buegge.
The team was happy to have some time to enjoy the paintings – a rare luxury on the Peace Run.
Some of the team couldn't resist having a go on the giant slide!
The women's team were grateful to stay in the hall of the Country Women's Association in Bridgetown. We were inspired to hear about the work they do in the community. Thank You for all the delicious scones and cakes!
