Dear Editor:
Close to 11 a.m. on Nov. 11, 1969, I was walking down a crowded sidewalk in Sydney. It was a beautiful, clear sunny day. I was wandering around taking in all the sights and sounds when suddenly everything and everyone stopped. This was long before flash mobs. I had no idea what was happening but stood in place with everyone else.
The amazing thing was the sudden and complete silence that accompanied this abrupt cessation of motion. I don’t recall a trigger. There were no sirens, bells or horns to mark the beginning or the end. One or two minutes passed and then it was over. Each person was in their own space. What they thought of or reflected on was also their own. Australians do this every year at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month on Remembrance Day. It is a way to remember war and to honor the dead. They have been doing it since 1919.
Sunday Aug. 5 is Universal Peace Day and is the 67th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The call now is not for silence but for the ringing of bells throughout the world. The Universal Peace Initiative calls this “A Peal for Peace” their mission is:
• To bring people around the world together to share their vision of peace
• To commemorate the exact moment of the bombing, 7:15 PM our time
• To transform a remembrance of horror into a rededication to life.
The hope is that the sound of these bells will trigger an awakening for all that hear them. If there are no church bells within earshot, you, alone or with others, can ring your own bell. Just stop, recall Hiroshima and reflect on the world as it is now. Nearly one hundred years after World War I we are still warring and still waiting for peace. Perhaps together, in these days of “wars and rumors of war…” we can find a way to “give peace a chance.”
The answer is out there. You can learn much more about the aftermath of Hiroshima, this peace project and Sunday’s activities by visiting any of the following sites: http://www.facebook.com/RingBells4Peace and ringBells4Peace@gmail.com and www.universalpeaceday.com.
“Never again”
Rosemary Orozco