With all the tales of school bathroom woe I've written this past couple of weeks, it makes a change more refreshing than a wet wipe to happen upon a story about something positive concerning schoolchildren and toilets -- even if not related to an actual school bathroom.

I'm sure we have all been caught short in public parks. The toilets in the ones I've been to have, without fail, been offensive: flickering lights, no toilet paper, a working washbasin only if I was lucky, and the putrid stench of ammonia from crystallized piss. Then there was the graffiti -- unrepeatable, some of it.

The situation is quite different at Bessho Daiichi Park in Minato Ward, Yokohama, Japan, where ninety-one sixth-graders have worked alongside a residents' association to produce colorful murals on the walls of a toilet.

With this potent mixture of paint and hard graft, the community-spirited munchkins' final product, three months in the making, is reportedly a veritable feast for the eyes. According to The Daily Yomiuri, the toilets are painted with "cherry blossoms for spring, trees with beetles and stag beetles for summer, leaves turning red for autumn, and snowmen for winter. Images of brightly colored fish and sea creatures, such as dolphins, octopuses and crabs, decorate the ceiling and walls inside, evoking the atmosphere of an aquarium."

The decoration arose from a project in which the kids cleaned the graffiti from the toilet walls. Doing the murals was the brainchild of Satoru Todoroki, the head of the local neighborhood association. His idea turned into the pupils' graduation project. Not only did the children plan the project, but their own designs were also used for the interior and exterior. Natsuka Ozaki, whose design was used on the outside of the block, summed up the project concisely: "We wanted to clean up the dirty toilet, and with everyone's help, it was a success."

Indeed! It seems a good way to encourage children to foster a community spirit -- and gain an understanding of what janitors have to deal with every day. Certainly I reckon none of the ninety-one children who participated in the project will become a turd terrorist. Perhaps children should do this sort of thing everywhere!

The only downside to this is happy tale is that I searched and searched, but could not find a picture of the toilet block anywhere. Anyone reading who lives near the park? Please send some photos!