(sea of ribbons of reunification wishes)
(flowers growing through the gaping cracks of an aging artillery hat worn during the Korean War)
In light of the upcoming 58th anniversary of the Korean War (1950-1953), observed June 25th of each passing year since the declaration of the ceasefire, and all the recent unsettling news of the ever-unstable internal North/South Korea power struggles, I have found hope in these images. Hope that better days will come to those who so desperately need them.
At the same time, these pictures recall the painful history of millions of people and the heartbreaking, lifelong separations from their loved ones. Being Korean, I know that pain first hand.
In a recent StyleLikeU interview, Illona Royce Smithkin, a survivor of the Nazi era, said “Something good must come out of something bad.” We hope that she will be right. It is only with hope that she very well may be.