BIRTH OF A MEDAL
On the occasion of an evening at a person whose name I have forgotten and to whom I believe I was not invited, I met Emile and Yacine. In the simplest way in the world we were led to discuss together, between the buffet and the living room.
Chance? I do not believe it. On the surface, our conversation was rather banal. However, I very quickly felt in our exchanges a lot of simplicity, sincerity and above all benevolence. I felt like we were like cogs in the same gear. However, this was by no means obvious. We were indeed all of different faiths (Muslim, Jewish and Christian) but also, aggravating circumstances if I dare to write it, of different ages (60, 40 and 30 years old). This moment that I would dare to describe as "fraternal", this parenthesis of friendship, also represents in my eyes the meeting, the very crossroads, between the three Abrahamic religions. Despite everything that separated us, I experienced a unique moment that evening, almost a state of grace.
Some time later, I continued to think back to that evening. Every time this discussion came to mind, a smile lit up my mind. I just had one fear: that this moment of harmony would only become a good memory. I then felt the need to materialize it. I had to both honor him and keep him close to me. So I sat down at my table and started drawing a medal. Why a medal? Quite simply because it is the talisman common to all the religions of the Book. Once done, I immediately filed it with the INPI. The person who recorded it then asked me: “what do you want to call it? ". I replied immediately, “Tolerance! This medal will be called Tolerance! ". For me it was like a no-brainer. A motto immediately imposed itself on me:
"Practice Your Own and Respect Others"
It was December 1, 2006 and since then I have worn it around my neck, both as a lucky charm and as a testimony.er décembre 2006 et depuis je la porte à mon cou, à la fois comme un porte-bonheur et comme un témoignage.
Build a room in your image
Our creator accompanies you to build the jewel of your dreams
Pièces de série
Collection Tolérance
I could clearly see in the eyes of others that this medal intrigued, amused, annoyed and even fascinated. In any case, she left no one indifferent.
It was then that the attack on Charlie Hebdo strongly encouraged me to make it a banner or, at the very least, an emblem. The idea that a simple medal reminiscent of the playful chatter between a Jew, a Muslim and a Christian could become a symbol of unity and universal love immediately filled me with enthusiasm. For this it was necessary to market it and donate the profits from the sales to the French Association for the Victims of Terrorism (AFVT). It was indeed important in my eyes to support this association because it is multi-denominational and the victims of the attacks are of all religions, nationalities and ethnicities. m’a aussitôt enthousiasmé. Pour cela il fallait la commercialiser et reverser les bénéfices des ventes à l’Association Française pour les Victimes du Terrorisme (AFVT). Il était en effet important à mes yeux de soutenir cette association parce qu’elle est multiconfessionnelle et que les victimes des attentats sont de toutes religions, de toutes nationalités et de toutes ethnies.
Allow me one last confidence. Even if it may make you smile, I hope that this symbol, and more modestly this medal, can one day be invoked against all extremism, all intolerance and that it finally unites to create smiles and stretch out hands.
With this text and this creation, I pay tribute to Yacine's sister who died in the Hydra attack at the UN on September 11, 2007, as well as to all the victims killed by intolerance.
Bruno PALSON
"PRACTICE YOUR OWN AND RESPECT OTHERS"