My encounter with a young, committed Muslim teacher still resonated within me. Together, we had shared a very lively experience with her Year 7 class. ‘It was a real island of peace that we experienced!’ she told me. A few days later, she wrote: "I wanted to change the world on a grand scale and thought I had to do something big until I realised that big change starts small – in encounters with children and young people. That's how I found my happiness. We build these bridges together, all of us, in our classes, in our communities, on the street, when we simply smile and greet each other.‘ Later, I read: ’We exchanged Christmas gifts with our Muslim friends. The task was to name the beautiful names of God that I see in my counterpart. And you know, when I think of you – after our shared experience at my school with you – I see God's mercy and kindness “al-rauf”, his gentleness “al-latif”, his strength and dignity “al-aziz”. When we reflect God's names in this way in our encounters, the world becomes a beautiful place."
