For the International Day of Peace, IAYSP-Switzerland organized an event entitled “Peace in a Healthy Lifestyle” in Biel, on September 25, 2021.
In order to find peace with others and within ourselves, the participants were invited to play sports together, to make sushi with the guidance of two chefs, Kimiko Mauron and Emi Komagata, and, to finish the day, to share deep talks in small groups.
Sport is an efficient way of gathering and uniting people of different countries, languages, and cultures. It teaches us to collaborate, be fair with each other, and support one another. IAYSP-Switzerland set up a sport session by first asking the participants “how do you find peace in sport or in yourself?”. By connecting to nature, while jogging, or with meditation, were some of the answers given while everyone was stretching.
From 1 PM until 3 PM, the participants played some Matanage, Football, Frisbee, and Badminton, depending on their preferences. At the end of the sports session, the whole group played some ultimate Frisbee together.
After that, more participants joined the initial group to prepare sushi. The chefs, Kimiko Mauron and Emi Komagata, two women born and raised in Japan, prepared some ingredients beforehand so that all the participants could learn how to roll Noris. In small groups, participants learned about the art of cooking and cooling the rice, putting the rice and aligning the ingredients on the seaweed sheet, and rolling the Nori so that it forms a uniform tube. The participants learned in a warm atmosphere how to make this famous healthy Japanese specialty.
While one group was taught how to make sushi, the other group had the opportunity to get to know each other through some boardgames.
After a few 2 hours of cooking, the participants could finally cut the Nori rolls and eat them in a buffet style. Some Miso soup, Maki and Inari Sushis were also prepared to accompany the Noris. Preparing food and eating it afterward were good opportunities to get to know each other’s characters and connect to each other.
Peace within us can be met by taking care of our body, cooking food ourselves and giving our body the right nutrients. The participants learnt a new recipe for their own future cooking sessions, but also could learn about Japanese culture and culinary art. They could also connect to one another by sharing this privileged moment together.
To end the activity, small groups of 4 to 5 people were given cards with “deep questions” on them, for example “which person would you like to meet?”, “what is your talent?”, or “what is something that you want to learn?”. Participants shared their personal answers with each other and got to know each other’s personalities more deeply.
To conclude, a total of 23 people participated in “Peace in a Healthy Lifestyle” in Biel. The group could find Peace within themselves by burning energy while doing sport, and by preparing and eating healthy food. They could also find Peace with each other by playing sports together, preparing some special food, sharing smiles and laughs. Ending the day with some deep talks, participants reflected and connected to each other on a deeper level.
Special thanks to Kimiko Mauron and Emi Komagata for teaching us the art of making sushi, for their generosity and essential support to the activity.
Report by Anya-Aurore Mauron