We were given the opportunity to speak at Sacred Heart Primary School in Shirokanedai, Minato City, Tokyo about the school lunch support program in Malawi run by NPO Seibo.

The day of the talk coincided with the feast day of Sr. Philippine Duchesne, a saint of the Society of the Sacred Heart. During the lecture, we connected her life and spirit with Seibo’s ongoing efforts to support school meals in Malawi today.

From “a distant country” to “something happening right now”
Rather than explaining only through words, we made a special effort to help the children feel that this was not simply a story about a faraway country, but something happening in the world right now.

In particular, we:

-Shared videos and photographs showing actual school lunches in Malawi
-Showed video messages sent from children and local partners in Malawi, encouraging questions and dialogue
These visual materials helped bring the reality of daily life in Malawi closer to the students.

The spirit of Sr. Philippine Duchesne and the children of Malawi
Sr. Philippine Duchesne traveled from France to America and continued to walk alongside people through prayer and action, even in very challenging circumstances. Her life resonates deeply with Seibo’s work of going out from Japan to Malawi and serving as a bridge between communities.

Her attitude of “not fearing difficult places and standing beside those most in need” transcends time and place, and strongly overlaps with the school lunch support currently taking place in Malawi.

We shared with the children that the life of a saint is not just a noble story from the past, but a way of living that continues in today’s world.

The many people behind one cup of coffee
In the latter part of the lecture, we showed a model of a coffee plant and explained how many people are involved before a single cup of coffee reaches us.

We talked about:
-Farmers in Malawi who grow coffee
-People involved in harvesting, drying, and sorting
-Those engaged in transportation and sales

Through this, the students learned that coffee is supported by the time, effort, and care of many individuals.

We received many thoughtful questions, such as:
“What kind of people grow the coffee?”
“How old are the children in Malawi?”

We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone at Sacred Heart Primary School for providing this precious opportunity, and to the children who listened so attentively and asked sincere questions.