It was the wind of peace di Samar Sahhar

It was the wind of peace that danced along with the heads of the cultivated crops of wheat and flowers announcing a new life and a new hope amongst the Israeli and the Palestinian people reminding everyone that we are all human beings with a heart that is in need of mercy and love and kindness .It was the women from  both sides who were also dancing and singing and coloring the sky with their smiles and laughter .Their souls soaring with gratitude as they were waiting for their sons and  loved ones to come out to a life of liberty ….The family of Gilad from one side and so many mothers ,families ,children waiting from the Palestinian side for their loved ones .We were all born free ,respiring from the ethics of our religions ……wether  Islam ,judism  or cristianity . the love that God gave as a gift to this whole world must be recalled .Diversity is a blessing and should never be a curse .I wonder of why we should all put away all those wonderful ethics of life when we could really use them to build a better world for everyone of us ,for our families and future generations .If we could really imagine of what peace could do to our lives .

To Gilad ,To the Palestinian prisoners I can say that today you have all come to freedom ,you will be walking along without guards and without barred wires, you have embraced your parents after a long time of bitter patience and waiting, it is a dream that has become true .We thank God because this is grace that has been granted to both our people ,let us use this opportunity to put our hearts together for a desire of peace for the future of our children on both sides .Let us remember that we have had an amazing opportunity of revival ,so let us use this to start again to wipe away all hate and revenge from our lives ,to put down all walls and build bridges of understanding and coexistence .

Just like the King of Jordan once said ,”If the land is precious ,then human beings are precious too ,our lives are precious too .”It is very much worth it not to go back to the same mistakes but to think of how to consider a new beginning .Let us start teaching our children of how to live together in peace and harmony ,for education is the key for the future .

It is evident that the palestinian  people have been known across history as lovers of peace and liberty and this vision must continue to exist .To both sides I say” There is no happiness in taking revenge. It is time that we should stop counting tomb stones and seeing bloodshed ,we have gone through so much pain and agony ,it is time to look at each other as brothers of the same land and perceive the suffering each of the other side.“It is important that those liberated and who have experienced so much pain during their captivity must seek justice also for both sides .that  from now on, we create an atmosphere of trust and respect and mutual understanding ,to open our minds to communicate with one another]

May God bestow peace  ,Salaam, Shalom in every  home ,on both people ,the Israeli and the Palestinian .May peace blossom as we continue walking on our path.                                                                                             In Christ,SamarSahhar,      21.10.2011

La lettera di Samar Sahhar alla madre di Gilad Shalit

                                                   To The Mother Of Gilad Shalit .

I would like to start this letter by presenting myself .My name is Samar Sahhar and I am a Palestinian living in East Jerusalem .I was the directress of a boys home in the village of Bethany in Palestine and then I founded a home for girls called the lazarus Home For Girls to accommodate women in difficult situations. Together with my Israeli Friend Angelica Calo’ Livine we organized the bread day for peace to bring Palestinian and Israeli women together.

It was last year and through only blind hate that I had lost my home in which I lived for years and the family that I cherished and loved, I am living separated from them at the moment waiting and longing to be reunited with them again.

I followed with great concern the story of your son Gilad since the beginning of the story five years ago and I constantly prayed for his return home and that of every prisoner in the world to be reunited with his loved ones .Your son is everyone’s son .Every real mother can understand how hard this must have been .Every time I saw you and your husband on TV I felt for you and for your family .There is no mother that would like to be separated or loose a son.

I was also watching the mothers from the Palestinian side and I believe that they are the sufferers and the most bearers from what was happening .The flowing tears of those women were falling silently as they waited each one for her son.

I was touched by  your son being led by the miracle of mercy towards your husband, to  embrace him for the first time after five years ,the word father ,mother must have come out breathlessly, must have been said in the most precious and unforgettable way ,this golden moment with the words mother ,father ,family must have been more precious than all the gold of the earth .I do hope that this same embrace will be enlarged in our hearts to embrace every captive and every prisoner and every person being treated in justly in this world .I was touched seeing many mothers from the Palestinian side hug their children endlessly .Many families were reunited .It was such bitter waiting but ended in bright hope for both sides .

It was a day when many mothers feasted and sang ,it was the day of resurrection and the clouds of darkness were being swept away by the sighs of relief of the so many who saw their loved ones again .In spite of the long distance and walls of separation between us,I am sure that on both the Israeli and the Palestinian side our hearts were united and  had the same desire for everlasting peace ,justice and co-existence between our people .It was a remarkable day with no bloodshed but a day that produced new hope for the future .

I am sending you my sincere congratulations on the release of your son, to you and to your family from Palestine, in the hope that we can put our hands together to build bridges of dialogue and peace between our people .May your son be the last soldier .May our prisoners be also last ones.

May we continue on the path leading to real peace for the sake of our children and the future generations to come ,may we understand forgiveness and always  give each other a second chance .Our souls are thirsting for the pure fountain of peace.

It may be that a seed has been sown now for both sides, a seed that will carry blossoms of hope, may your heart be warmed up with lots of sunshine as you see your son again …and the so many mothers who have seen their sons again.

I would like to recall the words of Januz Korzcak “we are brothers, children of the same earth; we have been preceded by generations that shared a common destiny for good and for evil …..one long common path .We get our light from the same sun and our crops are destroyed by the same hail ,the same earth covers the bones of our forefathers ……….we have known  more sorrow than joy ,more tears than laughter ,and neither you nor we bear the blame for this .

Let us all work together, let us educate ourselves together.

Peace, Salaam ,Shalom .

Sincerely Yours,

SamarSahhar