WAR: What is it good for?

What comes to mind when you hear the word "war"?  Pain, suffering, death, violence...
Honestly, war is somewhat vague for me because I've never personally experienced a war during
my lifetime.  I've been so blessed to live in a country that is safe.  Now that I think about, safety is something
that I take for granted.  It's something that I believe is so obvious.
Before I became familiar with IPYG,
I had no interest nor did I have any idea what was going on in the world around me. 
When I was living in the U.S., I had several friends who were sent to Afghanistan as soliders.
They were just teenagers, no more than 20 years old.
I heard countless stories of how their friends were killed
during their short time in the Middle East.  For WHAT did they die?
And what about the families of the
young soldiers killed during duty?
 Who will compensate them for the loss of their beloved son?  No amount
of money could ever make up for the death of these young soldiers.  They were mere children.
Look at this photo.  They should be playing soccer or drawing pictures of dogs and cats. 
Why are these young children holding
such viscious weapons?  Were they born merely to fight in a meaningless war and eventually to die?  No. 
This is why I respect IPYG so much.  For a long time, many have talked about this issue and acknowledged
the need for change.  However, IPYG has taken action to turn our hopes into a reality.

IPGY has shown us that
peace is possible and that a world without war, a world without the death of young lives is possible.
Let's join hands with IPYG and create a world where young people no longer have to be killed in pointless wars.

What does peace mean to me?

Someday I thought, “What does peace mean to me?”

Everybody seems to have a different ideas of what peace is. Many sources define peace as the description of a society where there was neither war nor social unrest. What is peace to me? What defines peace, and what are you willing to sacrifice for it?

World peace is a wonderful thought but I didn’t think we’ll ever see it. So, I described what peace means to me in my life. To me, peace is a feeling of calm, warm, satisfaction and the feeling that all is well in my world, my family, and my work.

Jimmy carter said, “Peace is more than the absence of war. There is an inner peace that comes from personal security and personal freedom. Peace also includes the sense of a mother and father that children will live, that they’ll have food for them to eat, and that they won’t be subject to a lifetime of suffering that could have been prevented.” He had been awarded novel peace prize at 2002. Many people including him feel and know keenly the necessity of peace, however, they couldn’t suggest an alternative which is method of world peace.

Few month ago, I was happy to contact the international peace youth group (IPYG) because of participating in peace activity with effective and realizable method. IPYG’s motto is to create a lasting change in the world through our passion and desire to see peace-loving citizens in every nation and a united world youth.

Since I met IPYG, my thought about peace is changed and broaden. Peace is the absence of war, not only between nations but also between personal, and nothing should have to be sacrificed for it such as youth, it should come naturally.

 

IPYG, International peace youth group - 1st commemoration of World peace

I have been to the event of  1st commemoration of World peace which is held by IPYG, International Peace Youth Group. I was so excited to participate in this Peace walk after I saw the video of IPYG’s activities for one year since it has been  organized.
 Before I join this peace walk, I could to see the video of walk peace last year.  IPYG claimed “Why is young life thrown away without having had a chance to bloom because of war?” I,  a  descendant of sacrificed youth in war, could agree to their request that the head of every country should sign an international agreement to bring all wars to an end. 

 I went to the UN cemetery with my foreign friends which is only one place in the world that commemorates Korean war in 1950s. In this memorable place, 10,000 people gathered for Peace walk! Everybody heard the speech of the IPYG’s chairman and watched the messages  sent from the leader of the organizations over the world. We all clapped and started to walk together yelling the word “Peace”

I could feel it is the “Power” to make a peace. In this performance, we could become advocates of Peace which  the chairman asked to us.
I am looking forward to see the summit which all leaders of the world will gather to discuss about Peace. The chairman proclaimed it the summit for the world alliance of religions for peace!
I  will let my friends all over the world know this works for peace. I hope all people live in the world of peace like nature blesses all lives.