Remembrance
An article about my father's wartime experiences appeared in the Remembrance Day issue of the Globe & Mail. It was written by a distant cousin, Peter Cheney, who writes the ‘Globe Drive’ section.
I'm very proud of my Dad, as are all of us in our family, but war is a terrible thing. While he was so young and enjoyed the excitement and adventure of flying, accompanied by a crew of other young men with whom he had an incredible friendship, when the horror of fighting a real war set in with the bombing and eventual loss of three of his crew, he was devastated. Although he survived, was praised for what he did, and has lived overall a good life since, he has also suffered greatly from the effects of that war.
I find myself often thinking about his experiences while we practice Aikido, an art of peace, a positive way of dealing with violence. O-Sensei knew firsthand the horrors of war and combat. What a contrast and what a different world we have in 2011.
Some time ago, I had a very interesting and moving conversation with a fellow Aikido student about his grandfather's experience fighting on the German side during WWII. The reality struck me that no matter what side of a war one fights on, the effect is equally devastating. And here we are now, descendants of those men, practicing Aikido at the same dojo in this peculiar age, when "wars" are fought for ambiguous and often highly questionable reasons, practically at the push of a button with high tech equipment.
As the Winter Solstice approaches and Canadian troops have left Afghanistan, war continues to be a reality in many parts of the world. I count myself as fortunate to practice Aikido, an art that neutralizes violence. May we all find our way to peace!
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