I wrote this poem because I believe we are at a pivotal moment of history. The war in Ukraine marks an inflection in the struggle between individual freedom and authoritarianism.  One side or the other stands to be significantly diminished by its outcome.  The war is not the only aspect of this struggle, clearly the current focus.

As we anticipate the next brutal stage of this war, we could witness a protracted struggle with the Ukrainians bearing unimaginable costs. Russians will also face hardship from the sanctions imposed upon them by the West.  But those sanctions and the spillover from the war will also mean disruption and costs born unequally within and between the nations within the alliance.

The outcome of this struggle may well depend upon persistence of the West in maintaining its cohesion and its commitments for as long as Russia continues its aggression.  This will not be easy.  The Russian people have a cultural history of stoic resistance and sacrifice.  They hear a single voice that paints the war as one of national honor against a fictionalized foe, fashioned from a romanticized past, that wants to diminish their role in the world. Russian disinformation could prove as difficult an encumbrance for the West as the Russian winter did for Napoleon.

The West is much more heterogeneous in its politics, its media voices and its perspective.  We are not necessarily singularly agreed on the implications of this war nor our willingness to sustain support in the face of economic and political costs at home.  After two years of covid deprivations and the subsequent inflationary spiral, frustration is high and political divisiveness is rampant.  A protracted period of “sanction siege” does not favor the endurance of Western resolve.

The idea of ringing bells at a common hour in communities throughout the Western World is an effort at the local level to reinforce the unity and resolve needed to secure peace and freedom for Ukraine and stability for all.  It is one small measure that we as a collective community might do to alleviate war and sanctions fatigue that threatens to divide us.