Roots of Peace is a “humanitarian organization” which prides itself on balancing the many political landmines which challenge our ability to ground our mission—getting the landmines out of the ground!

Yet, the date of December 4, 2006, marks the 9th anniversary of the signing of the Ottawa Treaty to Ban Landmines whereby 151 nations have signed this historic document where I was present in 1997 to personally witness this somber event featuring Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Jody Williams, who would later join our Roots of Peace Board of Directors with a vision to restore bountiful agriculture on former minefields.

Joining the heart of a mother years ago in Ottawa were distinguished California vintners, Eric Wente (Owner, Wente Wines), Tor Kenward (Senior Vice President, Beringer Wine Estates) and Robert Mondavi Winery/Canada. Respecting the plight of other farmers living in mine affected countries, we made this quest to Canada in the midst of a cold December day to celebrate the seeds we have in common rather than those which separate us. This was the beginning of a dream that would later be turned into reality—worldwide.

Months later, we turned this vision of MINES TO VINES into reality, as we gathered several hundred women to join us at The World Trade Club in San Francisco in April 1998 to go forth on the issue of landmines—this was a “call to action” for women worldwide to take the royal torch lit by the late Princess Diana and light the way forth on the landmine issue. My only credentials were the heart of a mother.

Among the distinguished guests were Mrs. Kofi (Nane) Annan and a relatively “new” San Francisco Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi. Together, we lifted our glasses with a special toast and vision to replace seeds of terror with seeds of hope. Nearly 10 years later, who knew where this stars of our destinies would rise, as the Honorable Nancy Pelosi is destined to be the first woman Speaker of the House!

Thus, I was honored to return to Washington, D.C. on December 4, 2006, to at the invitation of the U.S. - Afghan Women’s Council to attend a special event featuring keynote speaker, First Lady Laura Bush.

President George W. Bush and President Hamid Karzai announced the creation of the Council in 2002, which is co-chaired by Under-Secretary of State, Paula Dobriansky. Quietly sitting in the audience, I realized that this was a most fitting day to feature the inroads made in Afghanistan, as it is considered the most highly contaminated country in the world consisting of an estimated 10 million landmines and UXO’s which prevent the cultivation of agriculture and the sowing of the seeds of democracy. Silently, I recognized the significance of this special day of December 4th, and images of the landmine survivors whom we met only weeks ago remained etched in the forefront of my mind.

The accomplishments of the U.S. - Afghan Women’s Council are vast, and the powerful speakers included First Lady Laura Bush, President John DiGioia of Georgetown University, Ambassador Said Tayeb Jawad, Afghan Ambassador to the United States, and Under-Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky. The backdrop of the traditional Gaston Hall at the first Jesuit University in the United States added to the serious nature of this event, as key individuals pledged their continued commitment towards helping to rebuild Afghanistan on so many levels. This prestigious organization was established to ensure that Afghan women gain the skills and education necessary to participate in all sectors of society and to stimulate private and public assistance for such activities.

As the audience rose to greet The First Lady Laura Bush, she announced a new partnership between the U.S - Afghan Women’s Council and Georgetown University. Over the next two years, the Council and Georgetown will work to help empower Afghan women. The four key areas are: Education, Health, Economic Empowerment, and Political Participation and Training. Such tools will provide construction for a new Afghanistan. It was refreshing to hear the accomplishments amidst the perils, as during the past five years, the U.S. Government has contributed more than $10.3 billion to help Afghan reconstruction.

The First Lady stated, “In Afghanistan, courageous men and women are working every single day to build a stable and a democratic society for themselves. And, more than 7 million Afghans have access to health care. An additional 6 million Afghan children—including 2 million girls—now go to school.” As Shamim and I listened to those words from the front rows of the audience, we thought of the many Afghan children that we have truly helped through our Roots of Peace Penny Campaign!

The closing words by Shamim’s husband, Ambassador Said Tayeb Jawad, resonated in our hearts as he clearly stated, “Like a precious Afghan Embroidery, many hands and different colored threads are working together to restore the fabric of our society.”

As these words echoed through the chambers of Gaston Hall, we recognized that we had a Holiday dream from the heart of our nations’ capitol in Washington, D.C. For it every child in the world were able to gather their smallest denomination of “pennies for peace,” “rubles for peace,” “pesos for peace,” “yens for peace” and any lucky coins found along the road, then we would be able to pave the way for peace during this traditional season of “Peace on Earth.” During these challenging times, it is going to take a miracle. Yet, what better emissaries for peace than children to lead the way for a peaceful tomorrow…

The finale of our journey to Afghanistan culminated with an invitation by Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan to attend the King Hussein Foundation International PEACE-BUILDERS Gala hosted in New York City. In less than 30 days, this was quite a contrast to exchange our bullet proof vests in the Afghan vineyards for elegant ball gowns in the Big Apple!

Few mothers living in America have shared the experience of walking through a minefield, yet our three smiles depicted our genuine spirit of commitment towards illuminating the landmine issue so that families do not have to suffer the perils of landmines for generations to come…

What had led us to this moment? Seated at our table this evening was and old friend, Jerry White, Founder of Landmine Survivors Network, and it was at this moment that memories began to converge regarding the pathway that led us on a quest to the minefields of the world. Nearly 10 years ago, Jerry had entered the living room of our family home in Marin County, just outside San Francisco, with a compelling story on the landmine issue following the death of the late Princess Diana whom he personally escorted through Bosnia in August 1997.

Overcome with grief after attending her funeral in England, he spoke from the heart. As he sat on our living room couch, he rolled up his pants to reveal his artificial limb much to the surprise of our children who were not yet teenagers. Jerry told his personal story of a young Catholic boy from Brown University hiking the Golan Heights on a beautiful April morning with three buddies. Boom! Suddenly, his leg was torn off and his two friends had to walk him through an unmarked minefield—step by step—as blood spilled from his strapping body as they were all uncertain of the pathway that lay ahead. As a cancer survivor, I suddenly realized that landmines were a cancer to the earth. A childhood friend quietly played “Candle in the Wind” on the piano, as I lifted my glass in a toast that “The world may go from MINES TO VINES…” It was an epiphany of sorts, as a cascade of blood to wine washed through my mind like a wathercolor wash…turning killing fields into bountiful vineyards.

Unknown to our family was the fact that Jerry and the other speakers were destined to win the Nobel Peace Prize on the landmine issue just days later. Jody Williams, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, would later join our Roots of Peace Board of Directors…The scene was set.

As years went by, Jerry told me the special story of Her Majesty Queen Noor and King Hussein, as his final vision was to eradicate landmines from his beloved country of Jordan. As the King was riddled with cancer, he prepared a special “gift of life” for Jerry upon his visit to Jordan. According to Jerry, the Queen had taken him across the desert in her Land Rover to the banks of a river. Faith was his guide. Upon arrival, a gathering of interfaith clergy appeared as King Hussein and Her Majesty Queen Noor had arranged for the removal of landmines at the site where John the Baptist was said to have performed miracles along the riverbank. Once infested with landmines, these pristine waters were now cleared of these deadly seeds of terror.

My deepest respect for Her Majesty Queen Noor has only grown throughout the years as this story was revealed to me, for her grace radiates from within. Her particular words on this evening called upon global citizens to remember that we are “all sons and daughters of Abraham.” As a Hashemite descendent of the Prophet Muhammad, King Hussein believed he had a responsibility to reach out to and support all people—Arabs, Muslims, and others—to provide hope and opportunity to help them achieve their potential and accomplish their goals. Her Majesty said that he also knew that by focusing on a broader concept of human security—sharing the opportunities and benefits of our world with all people, and enabling them to contribute in return—could we transcend the deprivation and hopelessness that so often lead to conflict and insecurity.

On the eve of our traditional season of “Peace on Earth,” I am reminded of generational wisdom derived throughout the ages from many cultures.

As we prepared to depart on our mission to Afghanistan, several friends of various faiths sent us words of inspiration:

“The Sacred Hoop of any Nation is but one of many that together make the great circle of creation. In the center is a mighty flowering tree of life sheltering all the children of one mother and one father. All life is holy. We are part of the earth and it is part of us. To harm the earth, precious to God—to upset the balance of the circle—is to heap contempt on its creator. Therefore, with all our heart and mind, we must restore the balance of the earth for our grandchildren and the seventh generation.” ---From the Wisdom of Black Elk, Chief of Seattle

“It is a crucial thing to come to a point of decision, to weigh courses of action, to sense the meaning of directions. It is in such a moment that you know ether you are on the side of life or death, and the choice is yours to make. To affirm life is to accept growth, to accept challenge, to move with all of one’s full-orbited intent in response to the deepest that stirs within. Then the miracle takes place, the deepest thing in you, somehow makes contact with the deepest thing in life, and you know that the decision is on the side of life, not death.” ---Howard Thurman, Meditations of the Heart (1957).

“And they shall beat their swords into plowshares
And their spears into pruning hooks
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation
Neither shall they learn war anymore.”
--The Isaiah Prophesy 2:4-5

The Roots of Peace Girls Afghan Soccer Team greeted us with bright smiles on their home turf in Karte Char! Each week for the past several years, they have practiced diligently on the Roots of Peace Soccer Field surrounded by high walls to prevent the public from seeing these talented girls play a team sport.

Respectful of the Muslim culture, they play with long pants and scarves tied around their heads as they balance many worlds on the tip of their cleats. Shamim proudly joined me, as we distributed the official Roots of Peace team warm-ups featuring our logo with the grapevine and dove of peace.

It was especially wonderful to see Ahmad, the coach of the Roots of Peace Girls Soccer Team, as we had originally met him last August 2005 at the ICRC Clinic. My daughter Kyleigh had spoken to him as an 18 year old peer, as he was waiting to have a new leg adjusted where the limb was missing from the waist down. As Kyleigh asked Ahmad what was his favorite thing to do before his “accident”, he replied, “I loved to play soccer!” And, so we hired him on the spot as the official Roots of Peace Coach, where he proudly honed in on the girls’ skills leading them to national victory at the soccer field in Kabul—the same site where women were persecuted for not wearing their burka. Now, with three legs (two crutches and his good leg!), Ahmad represents the spirit of Afghanistan where the word “amputee” represents a badge of courage.

As the afternoon unfolded, the Roots of Peace Girls Soccer team presented us a paper tissue kite featuring the colors of Afghanistan—black, red, green and white! Suddenly, we were living the high life as we flew our brightly colored kites in the sky!

Running fast on former battlefields converted into playgrounds, we felt the surge of energy as the roots of peace were firmly grounded beneath our feet. Holding the spool next to our chests, we felt the heartstrings of kite thread connecting our earthly bodies to the skies above! Our colorful kites whisked in the wind as we battled for victory high above the landscape of Kabul.

Surviving the challenges of the week, we ran hard on the soils of Afghanistan and celebrated the fact that we were now were truly kite runners for peace!

As we walked outside of his offices, one could visibly see the sense of joy in his face! President Karzai gracefully placed his signature hat upon his head and walked into the formal room for a presentation of our fresh grapes and pomegranates. As I presented the boxes that were branded with the ROOTS OF PEACE LOGO of Afghan Sweet Grapes, the marketing concept was clear as his hand reached in to pull out the fruits of his soils.

The pomegranates were branded in a new corrugated box with the term AFGHAN GROWN prominently fixed on the decorated box. I explained that when Roots of Peace originally arrived in Afghanistan, the farmers were carrying the grapes on burlap sacks to market which bruised the fruit and provided no market identification. Now, by establishing the first cold storage chain, Roots of Peace is helping Afghan farmers to export fresh grapes across borders so that there is a shelf life for this beautiful produce.

As he glanced at the box, he saw our new RoP website for the Afghan farmers. President Karzai proudly held up the pomegranate and explained to the audience the best way to eat this delicious fruit harvested from the fields of his boyhood dreams in Kandahar!

Afghanistan’s recent history has left it one of the poorest countries in the world. Agricultural development will go a long way to improve Afghan lives and Roots of Peace is proud to help Afghanistan achieve its potential—one footsteps at a time. The events of the day were later seen on Afghan National Television, as the footsteps of two mothers of Afghan and American heritage brought “hope” to a country in transition.

A special “tashakor” to Ambassador Said Tayeb Jawad, Mrs. Shamim Jawad and Ashraf Haidari for taking the risk to believe in the heart of a mother, as the “gift” of compassion may help to heal the wounds of war in Afghanistan by replacing the scourge of landmines with the nectar of fresh grapes and pomegranates! …From Mines to Vines…

Inshallah!

I continued to reveal my "recipe for peace" as I explained that in addition to grafting, Roots of Peace has shown farmers how to build multiplication nurseries to grow saplings from cuttings pruned off existing vines. These nurseries—17 in 2005 and 38 in 2006—will help quickly replace missing vineyards destroyed by war and drought. Creating this supply of new plants, expected to be over 300,000 in 2006, is vital to rebuilding production. The demand for saplings is so high that one farmer made over $4,000 off of his nursery! Now, President Karzai’s eyes were really lighting up!

Together with farmers, the Roots of Peace program has built over 1,000 trellising demonstration plots in private vineyards—to show farmers the benefit of this technique on their own grapes in their own fields. The advantage of the trellis is three-fold:
It keeps grapes off the soil where they are susceptible to disease; it makes work for the farmers easier; and leaves more room on the ground for additional plants (no poppies!)
These benefits combine to double the farmers’ income. Roots of Peace has published a manual that shows farmers how to use readily available supplies and equipment to buld the concrete poles themselves for less than USD $7 each! (My own father was in the concrete block business that helped to build San Francisco, so I spoke with a voice of pioneer spirit experience!)

NEW ROOTS IN AFGHANISTAN means helping Afghan products reach international markets and will help them take their own giant footstep forward toward self-sustainability in the creation of alternative livelihood programs. Roots of Peace helped merchants sell over 100mt of chilled fresh grapes in 2005 to markets Afghanistan has never reached before: Germany, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Kuwait, India, and yes…even to Russia with love!

WALK THE TALK means opening new market channels, as Roots of Peace opened the formal first trade between Kabul and Moscow through “clusters of grapes” in sharp contrast to the “clusters of bombs” that sowed seeds of hated into the soils of Afghanistan in the 1970’s. Now, this was fertile grounds for peace!

As I walked into the Office of the President, I was stunned by the innate beauty of the Afghan craftsmanship that decorated our surroundings for visiting dignitaries. Suddenly, Shamim told me that I would be sitting next to President Karzai in the same seat that Tony Blair and George Bush are placed for formal meetings. Seconds later, the elegant President Hamid Karzai appeared to greet his guests from America as I was escorted by the Minister of Protocol to “the chair.”

A flash of cameras and television lights immediately filled the room, and I knew that I must quickly think on my feet (thank goodness I still had them after walking through the minefields!)

Time was precious, and I delivered my soundbite that Roots of Peace has raised the necessary funds to remove over 100,000 landmines and UXO’s north of Kabul in the once fertile Shomali Plains. Over 6000 Afghan farmers have been trained by us as they produce alternative agricultural livelihoods—terms President Karzai called forth during his recent visit to the United States for the Opening of the General Assembly! The Roots of Peace program works with merchants to communicate improved production techniques and new quality requirements to the farmers they buy from. Marketing experts then help associations of merchants and farmers build the capacity and infrastructure they need to reach international markets—increasing national income and farm-gate prices.

Grape production in the Shomali Valley is now mostly focused on smaller raisin grapes, but farmers are eager to switch to more profitable grapes! Roots of Peace has helped 1000 local farmers “graft” higher value vines onto 6,300 existing roots, allowing them to quickly switch varieties and increase income. The new varieties are large enough for the international market and command much higher prices locally as well!

This was MUSIC to President Karzai’s ears, as the country harvested over 59% higher opium poppy!

The tremendous honor of being granted a private meeting with His Excellency President Hamid Karzai brought yet another dimension to our journey of hope for Afghanistan, as our footsteps for peace took us through The Palace gates in Kabul. A majestic fortress protected this great President who emanates grace, intelligence and courage as he wakes each morning seeking to bring a brighter new day to the deserving people of Afghanistan.

Pioneering the seeds of democracy on his war torn homeland amidst daily suicide car bombings and NATO forces requires vigilance and great leadership, yet his chiseled face represents a deep sense of peace and grounded confidence. Shamim and I were most humbled to receive this private meeting with President Karzai during this critical “window of time” in Afghan history.

Driving in our bullet proof car through the gates of The Palace immediately elevated our senses. Great beauty amidst great security. Barbed wires arched in endless circles decorated the ancient architectural walls in a haunting beauty. And, majestic pine trees lined the long roadway with snipers rather than birds perched on branches protecting the entrance to this commanding royal structure. Cement barriers filled with bright red geraniums reflected the juxtaposition of war-time culture.

One could only dream of former times and imagine these great Palace grounds which proudly represented the cultural history which extended outside of these gates to this exotic country of Afghanistan. Shamim quietly whispered that all of Kabul once looked like the palace gardens before the invasion of the Soviets and Taliban—this was the place of her dreams. Palace guards stood tall with machine guns strapped to their ceremonial military attire.

Our “gift” to President Karzai was a simple carton of fresh grapes and pomegranates harvested on former minefields, and this forbidden fruit was carefully examined at every single checkpoint.

Visibly shakenshaken from the sound of the blast, we stood up and wiped the dirt from our pants. Suddenly, a farmer who had lost a limb to a landmine in the region came up to thank us for helping to restore peace in his village. I felt so unwarrented. There were so many landmines left to detonate, and yet we had just uncovered ONE. Smiling, he limped over to us and presented freshly made "boloonee"--a delicious Afghan bread stuffed with fresh green onions harvested from fields which Roots of Peace had demined. These were very poor people, and they probably sacrificed the food for their family to extend their most sincere hospitality to their visitors. The Afghan people are proud, and it is their culture to extend hospitality to visitors --especially those who make their fields safe for future generations.

As I bit into the warm boloonee, it was the most delicious bread I had ever eaten--perhaps because it was baked by the loving hands of an Afghan mother in appreciation for making the soils safe for her children to play. IMAGINE, if only the world may begin to remove "seeds of terror" from the earth from the ground up --one landmine at a time-- then global citizens may start to break bread with their neighbors again. IMAGINE, if amber waves of grain grew upon former minefields, and the American way may lead to a pathway in Afghanistan where the "roots" of peace may flourish from the ground up--not the top down.

As I walked down the dusty road by myself as the Afghan sun began to set, I realized how far I had come from my childhood dreams in California to bring "hope" to families half ways across the world. Quietly, I began humming another favorite Beattle song: "Let It Be, Let It Be...Mother Mary Calls to Me, Singing Words of Wisdom, Let It Be..."

Yes, there will be an answer, Let It Be... By removing one landmine at a time--turning seeds of terror into seeds of hope...from the fertile soils of Afghanistan.

Our journey through the minefields continued, as we ventured to a landmine site where a traditional green flag marked the graves of Afghan martyrs. A horror was explained to me that defied any haunting Halloween tale every told to me in my wildest nightmare. The Afghan deminer had come upon another landmine site. The gravesites where families visit to honor their dead were deliberately mined in the areas surrounding the bodies that were laid to rest. An APM landmine was found, and must be immediately removed. This time, we were properly advised to hike to the highest mountain and observe the detonation. Before I left, I stopped to say a silent prayer for the body of the mother, father, or child that was laid to rest in peace after surviving the violent wars that robbed Afghanistan.

The unspoken truth is that the body laying in rest would have the bones blown up in the blast, yet this was a viable alternative to losing the life of a local child who may take wayward footsteps to catch a ball which wandered onto this dangerous site. So, I bowed my head and walked to the top of the mountain.

The dynamite was set on top of the landmine and the fuse was lit. I sat next to the demining coordinator amidst this panoramic valley site. His black walkie-talkie communicated to the deminer below to begin the process. He must be quick, as his life depended on the moment. 2 minutes. 45 seconds. 10 seconds, 5 seconds, 4,3,2,1. BOOM! The blast shook the earth beneath my feet and I accidently knocked the camera out of Shamim's hand! The impact of this small device no larger than a coffee saucer had shaken the earth from a distance ...another one bites the dust.

Through Roots of Peace funding for demining in Afghanistan, we had helped to remove landmines in the Parwan Canal which allowed melted snows to flow down through ancient irrigation ducts bringing water to the vineyards for thousands of years. Yet, the cruelity of war deliberately mined these canals preventing the waters of life from flowing to the quenched villagers.

The Afghan deminer had spotted a LIVE landmine, and so we gathered around to observe the quiet demining techniques that were required to professionally identify and detonate this deadly seed of destruction. Silence. The deminer carefully excavated the area, and then held out a demining device similar to a hockey stick with a beeper at the end to identify the metal silently poised beneath the soil. The edges of the landmine were now evident, and we were invited down to the site to get a closer look with our camera crew. The magic "wand" was placed in my hands, and it was a frightening experience to silently wave the device back and forth across the soils as I heard the "beep, beep, beep..." indicating that we had found our deadly treasure.

The demining team was very professional. Yet there was an unforeseen emergency! The face of our guide went ashen white, and he shouted for all of us to run quickly as we retraced our footsteps out of the minefield. Villagers scattered into the hills! The camera crew captured this LIVE action on film, as a quiet pastoral setting of professional demining suddenly transformed into a potentially life or death situation.

Once safely beneath a tree located a safe distance away, the breathless deminer told us that we had come upon a rare "MS3" landmine. What did this mean? As he continued to explain, the normal anti-personnel landmines detonate with a minimum of eight pounds of pressure and traditionally riddle this region as the most common seeds of hatred beneath the soils. However, the "MS3" is a rare landmine that detonates as the soils are excavated. Half of the landmine was exposed, as the soils were slowly and gently removed by the deminer as I watched from less than two feet away. As the Soviet cyrillic lettering was exposed, he realized that it was capable of detonating at any moment by exposure to the air.

RUN, RUN QUICKLY! These words were translated in all languages! Due to the professional training of the deminer, I am here today to write these words on a computer with both English and Arabic lettering --trusting that my fingertips will accurately be able to reality that innocent families must experience every day as they live in landmine affected countries.

Sometimes, Friday the 13th is not so lucky for Afghan families living in mine affected regions...

As we carefully followed the footsteps of our demining guide, he sincerely thanked me for the generous financial investment made by Roots of Peace which enabled the courgeous deminers to remove over 100,000 landmines and UXO's from the soils of the Shomali Plains located north of Kabul. Gazing into the distance, I thought of all the amazing individuals who gave of their hearts to put Afghanistan back on their feet—without the fear of landmines beneath their plows. Now, I was here to witness the harvest of hope. The hours from our many voluteers, the dedication from our Roots of Peace staff, and the buckets of pennies from school children across America were providing a priceless return on the investment—fruit of the vine and the work of human hands…

Through the generous donations by a most special woman, Diane Disney Miller, we were able to restore childhood dreams for children living in these mine-affected regions. Diane's father was Walt Disney, and she came from a family of visionaries who had the courage to turn their ideas into reality. A quiet “tashakor” from my heart was sent to Diane for truly creating a Magic Kingdom for innocent Afghan families to play and enjoy the fruits of the earth, for little did we both realize that we were funding the removal of landmines around a true traditional Disney Castle in another context of Afghanistan. Images swirled through my mind, as I remembered enthusiastically watching Walt Disney on Sunday evenings as a child and always singing the opening song, "When you wish upon a star, doesn't matter who you are...anything your heart desires will come to you..."

Our heart's desire was to inspire peace from the ground up, so we kept walking...

Children came running from all directions to greet the foreigners to their village. My instincts were to cry out "Be careful where you walk, there's thunder in the ground!" But my English words would not be understood, and somehow I had to trust that their parents had given them mine-risk education.

The moment to WALK THE TALK had come, as Shamim and I courageously stood upon the soils of Karizi Mir in the Shomali Plains located north of Kabul.

This gorgeous landscape was the site of the resort for the former King of
Afghanistan, Zahir Shah, who is now referred to as the "Father of the
Nation." The bombed out palace was now the headquarters for The HALO Trust which is the British based demining organization who led the late Princess Diana safely through the minefields of Huambo, Angola. They would now guide the footsteps of an Afghan and American mother through the soils of Afghanistan. Inshallah! (Translated means "God Willing!")

As we suited up in our protective demining gear, they asked for our bloodtype in case of emergency. This was a moment of truth. My own dear mother had passed away only a few months ago, and I prayed that the blood that runs through my fingertips would be protected by my angels above. The chest gear was firmly strapped in, and the protective masks went down over our faces like astronauts preparing for Outer Space--an alien experience for two mothers whose hearts were rapidly pumping blood and leading the way forward...one careful step at a time.

The landscape was surreal, as it was one of the most panoramic tourist destination sites that I've ever seen. As we climbed to the mountain top, we were told that this was the frontline of battle for both the Soviets and the Taliban, and perhaps one of the most heavily mined areas in the world. The paradox of this situation is difficult to express, as the landscape consisted of pine trees lining the royal pathway to this once palacial mountain retreat. The Earth's traditional harvest was evident, as the leaves of the trees were bronze, golden and red as they gently drifted in the soft winds to the grassy fields during this Fall Season.

Yet, the wicked reality of landmines created an illusion as the panoramic landscape was the Devil's Garden rather than a Garden of Eden.

It is Friday the 13th, and I have survived my walk through the minefields of Afghanistan. In Western culture, this is often thought of as an unlucky daywhen the stars line up on the thirteenth day of the month on a Friday. Yet, as I glance down at my ten toes, ankles, and knees, I feel so very fortunate and truly "lucky" to have my limbs in tact--a concept that the world takes so much for granted.

The grounded decision to take interpid footsteps on the most heavily mined soils of the world was made to bring global visibility to the issue of landmines. While Kings, Queens, Presidents and Ambassadors strive to make important policy decisions to remove the "roots of terror" from our soils in a world spinning out of control, perhaps the simple footsteps of two
mothers--Afghan and American--may somehow bring the world back on their feet. Removing ONE landmine at a time seemed like a viable alternative to hiding under our covers in the US, as Shamim and I discussed the reality of walking hand-in-hand though a minefield in Afghanistan last September. Turning seeds of terror into seeds of hope...

After carefully discussing the risks of walking together through a minefield and understanding the reality of perhaps "not" coming home, I remember turning on the radio to calm my thoughts as I drove to pick up my 11 year old son from Middle School in California. A song from the past emeged as I turned up the volume: Imagine by John Lennon. My thoughts gently shifted the words to the music, "Imagine there's no landmines, it isn't hard to do...No hell beneath us, above us only sky..." As I slowly drove into the parking lot of my own alma mater Middle School, I knew that it was my destiny to go to Afghanistan. As I kissed my young son and waved to the other mothers, I somehow knew that I was no ordinary Marin County housewife and there was no way to explain my decision to my contemporaries. Great risk, yet great reward for children living outside of my most privleged community.