Conflict vs. Harmony

Yesterday was an important anniversary. "June 6th, 1944, marks D-Day, the largest seaborne invasion in history, when Allied forces landed on Normandy’s beaches to begin liberating Western Europe from Nazi occupation." I visited Le Mémorial de Caen in Normandy, France last September. I was moved to tears when I saw the the flags of the allied countries outside the museum. There is such a dichotomy of enemies and allies 

Fast forward to the present, there are even more wars happening around the world than eight months ago. My heart really aches for the relatively peaceful times in the latter part of the 20th century. 

When we were children, we could share space and resources. We compromised and took turns to get on the swings in the playground. We saw more similarities than differences in ourselves and our friends. We were more willing to accept each other as is.

I know for conflicts such as the American-Iran war, Russia-Ukraine war, Israel-Palestinian war and various civil wars to take place, there are often combinations of reasons and triggers. I only hope that the leaders of these countries would keep in mind the damages these wars caused when they try to resolve their differences, remembering the subtle losses such as worldwide high inflation and loss of traces of our history as a result.

Palmyra, Syria in December 2008

I yearn for harmony so that I could hear the kids chanting "Ole, Ole, Ole" at Iguazu Falls,

and kids giggling at Victoria Falls again, "Kikiki"...

Perhaps the answers are right in front of our eyes. Look for similarities rather than differences. The flags at the Memorial de Caen reminds us how much more wonderful the world could be when we live in harmony.