Day 2 - 312 -- Barriers come and gone

November 9, 1989 -- another of those historical dates that might appear in a modern history class. Twenty-six years ago today, the Berlin Wall fell after about 40 years of separating families, friends and a nation. It served as a visible symbol of oppression, with pieces of the wall now spread around the world as reminders.

This type of wall -- real or symbolic -- that separates people and systems has led me over the years to ponder the personal impact of such divisive policies. We read about families that are split apart and nations that become less functional or become two or more nations. The stresses of such actions must be unbearable -- even when there for the long term, there must still be a background of anxiety not knowing where family members are or how they are doing. Imagine that barrier being removed. What would that be like?

Thinking of this anniversary, one word came to mind. Luckily it is a word we find in many songs <smile>. The single word has been used as a title of at least two current songs. A new album that dropped last week contains a song with the title, which is also the album title. Granted the song is about something a bit different than what I'm thinking, but many of the lines spoke to me more broadly. Enjoy!

Hello - Hedley