Pray for Peace: Paint Blue and Yellow
Be considerate of others and respect differences. Do not compare, do not compete with anyone besides yourself, and be kind to others. These are words that our family always keeps in mind.
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. One year has passed since then.
In the sad reality of having to teach our children the meaning of the word “war,” we thought about what we could do at that time. To be close to the feelings of others. To think and imagine.
We painted using blue and yellow colors on the back of a piece of paper. Blue can be light blue, dark blue, sky blue, greenish blue like the deep sea, and many other kinds of blue. The same goes for yellow, from lemon yellow to orange.
While painting, we talked about many things. My daughter, who had just turned seven at the time, asked me many questions. “Why are they going to war?” “When will it end?” “Why? Why?” I did not know the “right answers,” but I tried to keep the conversation loving and honest. For the past year, my daughter has been asking me every chance she gets: “Ukraine and Russia are still fighting. I hope they can make up soon.”
One year since then...
A year has passed since then. Now we would like to transition to painting white, blue and red. It is not only one side that suffers from sad and painful feelings. There are many people in each country, and each person has many feelings. Again we imagine. And we learn the importance of mutual respect and dialogue.
There will always be conflict, but violence will never solve any problem.
Yellow and blue, white and red, and the differences among them are all different and all wonderful. I want to keep my mind honestly thinking that way.
As approach February 24th, I have written this here again so that I will not forget.
