When K recommended, we see 'The Swimmers' we eagerly logged into Netflix to watch. This amazing true story follows the journey of sisters Yusra and Sara who decide to flee the bombs falling on Damascus to Turkey, Greece and then on to Germany. The girls are swimmers, training with their father for a shot at the Olympics in Rio. The journey begins with the perilous crossing of the Mediterranean from Turkey to the island of Lesbos and then onward. The girl's strength as swimmers is put to the ultimate test in the broken-down and overcrowded 'life' raft. This is a story of heartbreak, devotion, desperation and sisterly love and care.
Just yesterday the CBC ran this story of two large scale rescues of migrants in life rafts attempting this dangerous crossing. The choices that people feel forced to make is beyond imagination.
After you read the news story or before you watch the film also listen to this amazing song by Sara Bareilles about the plight of refugees in the world. A Safe Place to Land. There are 30 million refugees in the world. I can't wrap my head around that number. But I can contemplate how we might help one mom and dad and their four children.