| By Admin1 (admin) on Sunday, September 23, 2001 - 12:31 am: Edit Post |
Just returned from the Peace Vigil for the PC 40th in Washington DC and it was an incredible experience.
Some highlights of the vigil included:
The march of returned volunteers with the 120 Country of Service Flags along the side of the reflecting pool up onto the steps of the Lincoln Memorial where they stood behind the speakers during the entire vigil.
Hearing Sargent Shriver - at 86 still as strong and vital as ever - talk about his vision for the Peace Corps in the 21st century.
Listening to musical selections by guests from our Countries of Service - highlighted by music by a Ukrainian flutist and a Liberian singer interpreting the Lord's prayer.
Hearing stories by Peace Corps Writers of our shared experiences - some humorous, some serious - but all touching.
The final prayer by Father Drinan where he asked for a moment of silence. It was astonishing to hear only the sounds of birds chirping in the background and wind moving through the trees as a hundreds of people went completely silent - and then for a instant even the sound of the birds and wind stopped as time seemed to stand still.
The final singing of "Amazing Grace" and "Let there be Peace on Earth" when we joined hands and felt the fellowship of being surrounded by so many good people and kindred spirits. In spite of everything that has happened in the last ten days - the feeling of comradeship and noble purpose overcame all the hurt and discouragement.
In the next few days, we plan to post quicktime movies of the vigil to share with the entire Peace Corps community.