Day 2: Neighbors of Light and Dark

Wish 2: Forgiveness

This is a tale of two neighboring towns.

Deep in the northern part of the province of Salzburg in Austria lies a border town called Braunau am Inn. It's a typical Austrian town, small and clean. A river separates this town from another in Germany. In the 80's it was bland and there was a certain air of gloom over it. It was nothing to write home about.

About 20-30 minutes to the South is a similar border town called Oberndorf bei Salzburg. It's also a typical Austrian town, and the same river separates it from another town in Germany. But it has a steady stream of visitors. It seems to have an atmosphere of joy. The kind of joy you feel at Christmas.

If you visit both towns in the same day, you leave with a feeling of both doom and hope - yang and yin, dark and light. That's because of the opposing historical significance of both towns.

Braunau was the birthplace of Adolf Hitler. Oberndorf was the birthplace of the song Silent Night.

Silent Night Chapel in Oberndorf.

There were no tourist signs around Braunau. The curious travelers approach the town with care not to mention the unmentionable name. Don't make a mistake asking for directions to the birth house or you'll be run out of town with pitchforks. People who gaze at the unmarked building are looked at with scorn by the locals.

In Oberndorf, there are ample parking spaces for the visitors of the Stille Nacht Kapelle. A small unassuming chapel stands where the original chapel used to be. The chapel is so small, there are only three pews, and enough room for a dozen people. Inside it is so quiet that you can hear, in your mind, the strumming of the guitar and the solemn melody created by Joseph Mohr and Franz Xaver Gruber.

For many years, the building where Hitler was born was left to the elements. In 2002, Braunau decided to look towards the future. The building, and everything around it was repainted, but it is still kept a secret. It was trying to reposition itself from being the unfortunate host of the worst tyrant of the 20th century to an advocate of truth and healing. Today, it is a quaint village worth visiting.

Oberndorf continues to promote the world's most recognized Christmas melody. It hosts a big Christmas Eve mass which culminates in the singing of Silent Night. The singing is so inclusive, visitors are asked to sing it in their own language.

Braunau am Inn, Austria, today.

Austria has these two towns of light and dark - only 30 kilometers apart. Both towns are trying to make the best of what they are known for. And for Braunau, it has shed its unfortunate reputation. It took decades to do that.

People are not so fortunate - life is short. You can be a person of virtue, and all can be ruined by a single mistake. Like a spot in the middle of a clean sheet, the errors of our friends and family are easily fixated upon.

So, my wish today is for forgiveness. If we can forgive and forget the dark aspects of history, we can surely forgive those who have been close to us all our lives.