As
Ahmed pressed the enter key,
the most amazing thing happened.
A Rainbow of light seemed
to rise out of the ground
beneath their feet. It stretched
up over their heads and out
over the top of the bridge
across to the pot of treasure
on the other side. They were
standing on the rainbow!
Tentatively, the Better World
Kids looked out at the rainbow
as it hung suspended above
the bridge. They held hands
as they walked together over
the great chasm, and finally
they were standing in front
of a small pot of golden treasure.
The kids couldn't believe
their eyes. The gold shimmered
and sparkled in the sunlight,
holding their attention. It
was a long time before any
of them could even look away.
Finally Sunanda did though,
after a pleasurable sigh of
joy. It was then that she
noticed a sign next to the
treasure.
"Congratulations,
Better World Kids," she read.
"Look guys!" she gasped.
They read the rest of the
sign together. "You did it!
This Eco Treasure is yours.
I have confidence that you
will use it to help make your
wish for a better world come
true."
There was a contract and a
check tacked onto the sign.
The check was for $1 billion
dollars!
The kids could not believe
that this was happening. They
knew that with a billion dollars
they could really help change
the world. They had been dreaming
about so many ideas and plans
that they'd wanted to pursue.
Now they'd be able to do all
of them and more.
And that's exactly what they
did.
As soon as the weekly Better
World Kids meeting was adjourned,
the kids went back to their
own homes and communities.
They told their families about
the Eco Treasure they'd found,
although they left out the
part about finding it IN Cyberspace.
Of course their families thought
they were all kidding. But
Sunanda's father arranged
for all of the families to
travel by plane to meet together
and discuss the contract that
they all had to sign.
The Better World Kids were
so excited. Although they
magically got together for
their Better World Kids meetings
each week in cyberspace, somehow,
meeting together in real time
and space seemed even more
magical.
The Better World Kids' families
sat with their mouths open,
unable to speak at all, as
the Better World Kids shared
with them all of the ideas
they had.
They told their families about
all of the amazing things
that people were doing across
the globe to help make the
world a better place and about
their idea to unite those
efforts to create a global
movement that would help to
transform the world.
"Think
about what the world would
be like if striving to create
a better world was the common
goal that everyone shared,"
Sunanda said.
"Think
about what it would be like
if ALL kids and adults learned
the skills and tools to work
their problems out peacefully,"
Ahmed added.
"And
if people worked not just
to make money, but to make
the world safer and better
for everyone..." Erin declared,
"... all the planet's ecoystems,
all the people, and the animals
and plants…"
"Think
about what it would be like
if our heroes weren't just
sports stars and entertainment
celebrities, but those who
were working to make the world
a better place for everyone…"
Maya piped in.
"If
we were inspired and encouraged
to work together for a better
world in the TV shows we watched,
and the nightly news reports,
and in our video games, and
the music on the radio and
in movies and magazines and
books…" Johnny continued.
"Can
you imagine walking in to
a bookstore or Video Store
with a whole section of exciting
choices about working For
a Better World…" Ling laughed.
The kids had a million ideas
about things they could do.
"Let's start now!" everyone
agreed. And so they did.
Chapter
6. Is Peace on Earth only
a dream?
Sunanda
woke up with a start. "Where
am I?" she thought for only
a moment as she saw that she
was lying on her bed. Her
laptop was humming quietly
beside her and she glanced
down at the clock.
"Oh
thank goodness I didn't miss
our Better World Team meeting,"
she sighed. "I must have been
napping, but I woke up just
in time!"
Then she saw the unopened
package on the bed and she
had the strangest feeling.
Suddenly she felt very confused.
"Wow, that was a strange dream.
It felt so real…"
She found herself automatically
typing in the Better World
Team web address. Suddenly
she was in Cyberspace, and
all her friends were there
waiting for her.
"What's
the matter, Sunanda?" they
all asked, because she really
didn't seem herself.
"I
just had the weirdest dream
..." She told them all about
the Eco Treasure Hunt they
had all gone on together in
her dream, and the wonderful
eco treasure they found, and
how with all that money, they
had taken a giant leap forward
in creating a better world.
"That's
some dream!" the Better World
Kids agreed. "If only it were
true."
Sunanda sighed sadly. Then
she saw the package in her
hand. "Oh, yeah, I forgot
about this package that came
today. I guess this is what
got my imagination running
wild," she sighed. "It's probably
just a book or a CD from another
Better World Team, like that
one I got last month..."
"Well,
that CD was really inspiring,"
Ling said. "So, I'd love to
hear this one."
"Yeah,
there are so many people creating
beautiful works that are helping
to inspire a better world
…" Jamal said.
"But,
maybe there really IS a treasure
map inside the package," Sunanda
teased.
"Wouldn't
that be wonderful," Sunanda
sighed yet again.
The
Better World Kids agreed,
but they knew they already
had the greatest treasure
they could hope for - each
other!
"Well, open it already, Sunanda!"
the kids urged.
And
that's just what she did.
