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Local woman visits South Korea as “Ambassador for Peace”

By Sharon Barnett

I was given the opportunity to visit South Korea for several weeks in February as an “Ambassador for Peace.”

Seoul is a high-energy city. They are full of love and quick to tightly hold your hand or sit you down for a rest or a bite to eat. It is a wide, fast-developing city. I also visited an area near the DMZ with rugged mountain landscapes and pristine lakes.

Contrary to what some may believe, Korea is not a backwards, behind-the-times culture. As a nation Korea has, on a grand scale, adopted the use of email, computers, cell phones, high-speed internet and those who hold science degrees are almost double per capita that of the U.S. ­ the most “wired” country in the world.

It was a treasure for me to build friendships with those whom I met during this campaign. I attended Brotherhood and Sisterhood ceremonies and was made a “pen pal” to a counterpart in Korea ­ a teacher of 40 years. The goal is to invite them to stay in our homes here; open our doors to their children, let them know that we love and support them and provide whatever support we can for a north/south reunion.

I met a man who left North Korea “for a week” and the war carried him away to Busan. He hasn’t been back in 50 years! His heart aches for the family members he’s left behind, unable to write, telephone or visit them. This line of confrontation is Korea’s 38th parallel.

While I was there, the first highway to cross it since armistice was opened. This is the time of the liberation, the healing of all resentments and suffering. When the conditions are right, giant things can happen in history. The time is now.

While some look at the current nuclear sabre-rattling as a crisis, I look at this time as a great opportunity for leaders in peace to make a difference in the Koreas.

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