I hate war. War kills. War maims. War widows. War orphans. And it leaves a deep scar not only on the land, that will take years to heal, but also in the hearts of those who are affected by the war. I am one of those who carry a deep emotional wound to this day, more than sixty years later. Shattered by the wars is based on a story of my family in Seoul, Korea. It is a story of love, sacrifice, faith, suffering - all wrapped in one package. Father -- a Korean Christian minister in South Korea -- gave his life for his God. He was in prison under Japan in WWII, and during the Korean War when Seoul was under the Northern army, he was taken away by the North. He never returned. 1942 -1950 Hi-Bum, my eldest brother, the brightest in my family, gave us much suffering because his Marxist views in the democratic South Korea. He was taken to prison by the South Korean police. When the Northern army entered Seoul during the Korean War in 1950, he was released from the prison. When the South recaptured Seoul, he disappeared and never returned. 1945-1950. Hi-Seung, my elder brother, the dumbest in my family, gave his life to save his father in the Japanese prison during WWII. In 1942 he left home for Japan as a vibrant 15-year old boy as a volunteer soldier. In 1945 he came back home as an injured old man, and died from his injury a year later. 1942-1946 During the Korean War, when Seoul was freed from the Northern army, I and my mother fled Seoul. Without Father, we struggled to survive for the two long years. Then in 1953 during the Korean War, Mother put me -- her youngest 16 year old son -- on a boat heading for America so that he would be safe and get a good education. The heroine in the story is my mother as seen by her youngest son. Mother prayed without ceasing; days and nights; when she was happy and when she was sad. Through her 'Not my will but Your will be done' prayers, she was able to walk through the dark tunnel of despair and distress, and led us onward with love and grace and absolute faith in God. I wrote the story in the hope that the readers would seek harmony at home and peace in the world. I picture a scene where people from diverse cultures hold hands across the vast continents and over the deep oceans, form a huge circle, look at each other with broad smiles, and sing a mighty song of brotherhood. Wouldn't it be wonderful if that day would come in our lifetime?