On Saturday I was out doing errands & as I drove past the Unitarian Church, I saw stuff sitting on their front lawn, but soon realized it wasn't a yard sale, it was a display called "Eyes Wide Open" put on by the  afsc organization . I stopped to have a closer look.
 
                 
   The main portion of the exhibit is rows of combat boots, each with a name &  photo of an Ohio  soldier killed in Iraq tied to the laces. Each one was someone's child, sibling, lover, friend. Some of the boots are scuffed, some newer and the rows look like crosses at Arlington Cemetery. I started to cry as I walked  through the lines  of them.  Next to the boots was concentric circles of regular shoes around a tree, these represent Iraqi  civilians killed. The little kid shoes really gets to you. Behind the whole display is a wire framework with strips of white cloth, each with the name a person killed. Strings of tiny bells blow in the wind with the cloth, reminding me of Buddhist ceremonies where bells are rung at funerals.
    It was all very moving and I was having trouble taking pictures, because I couldn't see through the tears. Strange to think something so simple as a bunch of shoes could be so powerful. It was the perfect thing to do for Memorial Day.