The Hope for Wholeness

All of the groups spent Thursday either working or presenting their projects. My group was scheduled to present at 9:00 am on Friday, so we spent the day polishing up our presentation and paper. Two of my roommates, Dana and Kristen, worked on a project called the Famagusta Eco City project. They worked with Vasia and her mother, who I mentioned in one of my earlier posts. Vasia is a rising filmmaker who is currently residing in New York City, directing a documentary on Famagusta. She and her mother are leading a project to dissolve the physical and emotional barriers dividing Cyprus, leading to one, unified country.

Eric, Jenn and I wanted to attend my roommates’ presentation to hear their story and their recommendations. The Famagusta story is so profound in Cyprus. Its memories, pain and scars are embedded deep in the hearts and souls of the Cypriots who were forced to flee their homes. The ache has been passed on to subsequent generations who did not experience the event, but who feel the pain of their parents and grandparents.

After the presentation, Vasia’s mother spoke about what this vision means to her. She said, “This is what I do. I sit back and just dream. We are dreamers. We are believers. We have vision. Pictures are powerful, but ideas are even more powerful. I cannot make you fully understand the significance of this. It is not just a project. It is not just a conflict. This is about humanity. This is about sustainability. This is a symbol about sustaining humanity. This is about the survival of mankind.”

As she spoke, emotion poured onto her face and into her gestures. She raised her hand to her heart, tears welled up in her eyes, and she conveyed genuine passion, pain, and hope all at the same time.

I understood what she meant that she could not fully make us understand what this vision of unification means to her and to Cyprus. We can sympathize, but we cannot empathize. There are some experiences in life that cannot adequately be conveyed to others who did not have the experience. Not even the most detailed descriptions can inject the feelings and emotions into others. There are some things you simply have to experience to understand. Famagusta is one such example. We visited the city earlier in our trip and were forever moved by what we saw. We can imagine the pain, fear and sorrow the people felt forty years ago and still feel today, but we cannot understand on the same level as those who were part of the experience. People who have had the same deep, painful experiences together are bonded for life because no one else can quite relate in the same way.

Vasia and her mother were so touched that all of us are so interested in their vision. It is difficult not to be, as it is such a noble undertaking. Although we cannot empathize, our hearts ache for what we saw and our hearts hope Cyprus will become whole again.

I think about what it would be like if the unification happened in my lifetime. It is emotional to think about. I cannot imagine how it would emotionally impact the whole country and the people who experienced it after more than four decades of hoping.

One of the signs on the fence surrounding Famagusta reads: “Let us back in. You have locked our souls in there.” The country is not the only thing that is split in two. People’s hearts and souls remain divided as well, spliced down the middle, just waiting. Waiting to become whole again.