Etikettarkiv: #Peace

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Four Hundred and Eighty-Third Asic- 9/11 in Retrospective

Sixteen years ago I was on maternity leave with my youngest daughter. I spent my days breastfeeding… at least so it seems in a retrospective. My daughter was the kind of baby that you cannot really feed enough, so I found myself watching all the available soap operas… There was however one afternoon (…but it was MORNING in the USA…) that was not at all like the rest. In Sweden where I live, like in most other countries, we have the tradition of ”breaking news” if something extraordinary happens. I remember the 9th of September 2001 exactly like that. I was actually watching an extra news alert with the footage of the first Tower of WTC burning when there, right then, the second tower was hit. The Swedish News reporter commented this and I remember I felt strangely aware of that particular moment, as a ”NOW” to remember forever… A truly moment of MINDFULNESS.

My first reaction after a short while, was to write to my friend in NJ. At the time he worked as a teacher in a school south of Philly. I wrote ”Are you safe?” and he pretty much replied ”Yes. Why do you ask?” and as I remember it, he and the rest of the staff in that school did NOT know from the start what had happened in NYC, but I did, 8000 km away… That was the start of a surreal experience of watching a part of our history from my livingroom. In fact, it all happened then and there in front of me and it was horrific. I remember thinking of the future then and now I think of all the things that have happened AFTER that date. There are wars and conflicts all over the globe. Terror and meaningless violence has become a part of our time, no matter what we think. It makes me sad that so many people worldwide suffer from conflicts or become the victims of terror acts.  I think the only way to change is within ourselves. Worldwide peace may not come during my lifetime, but I hope for a more generous era soon to come. It is about time we give peace a chance.

#Himmel, #asaole

 

 

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Four Hundred and Sixtyninth Asic- I am a Londoner!

Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Thought, Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Press, are all manifestations of our right to express ourselves in our democratic society. Those rights enable us to be exactly the persons we would like to be. It took hard work by previous generations to reach this level of freedom for ordinary citizens and it is worth fighting for. In my country it is possible to express oneself without fearing repression.

Terrorism strikes unpredictably and kills and hurts innocent civilians, with no chance to protect themselves. We cannot know where or when will be next time. Lately, terror attacks in arenas or crowded places have proven that terrorists strike towards not just the democratic rights, but towards a certain free lifestyle where we enjoy cultural events such as concerts, soccer games and so on.

When we choose to stay at home because we fear terror, never meet in cultural events or have a coffee or beer with a friend, the terrorists win. Let’s fight them in a peaceful way! My goal for today will be to meet with a friend or two and have a Swedish ”fika”. That will be my humble protest in a world of terror. #fikaagainsterror

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Four hundred and fifty-forth åsic- For my democratic right to write!<3

Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Thought, Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Press, are all manifestations of our right to express ourselves and our right to be exactly the persons we would like to be. Any violance directly connected to those rights is a violation towards mankind, a step backwards in a process that needs to go forward! This is a serious situation in communities where democratic values allow people to stand up for their own view of life. Countries where these absolutely necessary rights are not allowed, should be questioned by the rest of the world, not once or twice, but over and over again! 

I live in a country where I am allowed to have an opinion of my own and I understand that I am very fortunate. In the aftermath of the Stockholm terror attack the 7th of April 2017, several good examples of empathic actions took place. People formed groups for different purposes. All those friendly acts right after the terror attack is a true sign of a healthy democracy and to me they also show some hope:

We help each other in times of trouble

The terrorists want us to feel insecure, to fear crowds, fear going to public events. They want us to stay at home, not attending any concerts, any football games etc. Terror acts, whether they are in London, in Belgium, in France or like now, in Stockholm, is a global problem. Stockholm was hit yesterday but not later than tomorrow democracy strikes back in its own lovely way. Tomorrow a planned soccer game between the team Hammarby (from Stockholm) and Kalmar (from south of Sweden) will start off with a manifestation against terrorism. What a lovely initiative! I am not a soccer fan, but I am a fan of democracy! ❤

We can all contribute in different ways by using our democratic rights. My contribution will be writing. What is yours?

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Three Hundred and Fifty-Ninth Asic- 9/11 in Retrospective

#American flag, #stars and stripes, #asaoleFifteen years ago I was on maternity leave with my youngest daughter. I spent my days breastfeeding… at least so it seems in a retrospective. My daughter was the kind of baby that you cannot really feed enough, so I found myself watching all the available soap operas… There was however one afternoon (But it was MORNING in the USA…) that was not at all like the rest. In Sweden where I live, like in most other countries, we have the tradition of ”breaking news” if something extraordinary happens. I remember the 9th of September 2001 exactly like that. I was actually watching an extra news alert with the footage of the first Tower of WTC burning when there, right then, the second tower was hit. The Swedish News reporter commented this and I remember I felt strangely aware of that particular moment, as a ”NOW” to remember forever… A truly moment of MINDFULNESS.

My first reaction after a short while, was to write to my friend in NJ. At the time he worked as a teacher in a school south of Philly. I wrote ”Are you safe?” and he pretty much replied ”Yes. Why do you ask?” and as I remember it, he and the rest of the staff in that school did NOT know from the start what had happened in NYC, but I did, 8000 km away… That was the start of a surreal experience of watching a part of our history from my livingroom. In fact, it all happened then and there in front of me and it was horrific. I remember thinking of the future then and now I think of all the things that have happened AFTER that date. There are wars and conflicts all over the globe. Terror and meaningless violence has become a part of our time, no matter what we think. It makes me sad that so many people worldwide suffer from conflicts or become the victims of terror acts.  I think the only way to change is within ourselves. Worldwide peace may not come during my lifetime, but I hope for a more generous era soon to come. It is about time we give peace a chance.

#Himmel, #asaole

 

 

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One hundred and fortyforth åsic- Je suis Charlie

Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Thought, Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Press, are all manifestations of our right to express ourselves and our right to be exactly the persons we would like to. Any violance directly connected to those rights is a violation towards mankind, a step backwards in a process that needs to go forward! This is a serious situation not just in France, but everywhere in communities where democratic values allow people to stand up for their own view of life. Countries where these absolutely necessary rights are not allowed, should be questioned by the rest of the world, not once or twice, but over and over again! 

I live in a country where I am allowed to have an opinion of my own and I understand that I am very fortunate. A blogger in Saudi Arabia who was sentenced to ten years for setting up a website for public debate, will apart from the ten years in prison also be flogged 1000 times. His ”crime” was helping fellow citizens to express their minds. I have lately had the chance to learn more about the conditions in a few countries with strong dictatorships. The  meaningless killings the last few days in France was connected to democracy and our right to express ourselves in different ways. It is not a multicultural problem or a religious problem in Western societies, but terrorism with extremistic features. Blaming a certain religious group is contraproductive. Blaming militant extremism is however to see what it’s all about. Violence created in the name of the religion is not the same as THE religion. But when innocent people are killed we are frustrated and sad and may seek for a scapegoat to blame instead of manifesting our strong will to end violence in general and terrorism in particular.

Today the tragic events in France reminded me of how many relations one single person is involved with and how many roles each and one of us have. As an example, I am a daughter, a mom a wife a sister, an aunt, I am a teacher a friend and a lot more of course. The impact of the terror acts in France is thus very much a global problem. We need to be responsible for our acts.

If we are not Free to Live if someone else has an opposing viewpoint, we might need to address the issue of how easily weapons are spread worldwide? No guns means fewer killings. Terrorists with no guns will not stop being terrorists, but at least we give them a hard time. Sadly enough Swedish weapons are used worldwide, although it is said that ”we” are not selling to countries at war… If Sweden stop selling weapons and starts producing something more useful in Bofors, at least we made a contribution for peace. Yes. I know. Many of you will say that if there is no weapons, how could we fight terrorists???? I don’t know. Do you? If we are not Free to Live if someone else has an opposing viewpoint and we do absolutely nothing to prevent the continuous killing, we will lose in the end. Let’s not lose! My contribution will be writing. What is your contribution?

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#Carl-Fredrik Reuterswärds ”Non-Violence” is placed outside the UN Building in NYC

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One hundred and twentysecond åsic- Imagine!

 

 

 

 

In 1980, I was only thirteen years old, when I heard a long row of John Lennon songs. The songs were all masterpieces and that made me listen. I wanted to know who sang… They played the Beatles, too, and after a while the many interviews accompanied the lovely music. In just a couple of days I discovered that there had been a singer/composer/writer called John Lennon AND that someone had put his life to an end. I have missed him, although I never knew him. I have enjoyed the many tunes he gave to the world and I wish for real, that his thoughts already had become truth. A month ago I commented on the Berlin Wall Memorial in my #ninetyninth åsic, by sharing the lyrics to Imagine. For all those who suffer in wars, worldwide, for all those who live in despair for a reason. Imagine!

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