I usually shy away from politics, especially with the Middle East, but my post is trying to bridge a gap which exists, that's all. I saw a very moving documentary on the Ovation channel the other night called, "Music In the Line of Fire." An English musician, a lute player, took his instrument to the Middle East and spoke to musicians on either side of the line. Palestinians, as well as Jews play a very similar instrument and with this in common, the Englishman allowed us to glimpse at the sadness which encompasses both peoples concerning their land. Both peoples have a love for their land such as I have never seen and from a musical standpoint, both had more in common than one would think. I was saddened by the fact that there was such separation of those who had such an equal love for the music. My thoughts were that if the two opposing sides could just come together from a musical standpoint, maybe it would be the beginning of peace. As I thought further, I realized too, that this could never happen. The songs that each sing stem from a love of a nation and of a people beyond what most of us Westerners could understand. But for a moment, I saw a brief connection between the two. The love of music flowed freely back and forth between the boundaries courtesy of the editing room...and then the show was over. Sherelle
