“Can you leave those [flashbacks] behind? And if you can’t, what do you do to turn the flashbacks, to put the shadows behind you?” (Audience Member, CMHR launch, 2019)

Healing Takes Time
Overcoming hardships and healing from trauma is a non-linear process that differs in time and in experiences for each survivor. There is no "one-size fits all" approach to healing, and the exhibit encourages the creation of a dialogue about healing, storytelling, and reconciling with family. Several questions from the Ugandan National Museum discussion asked about Acan’s and Amony’s ability to move on from the past and how they have reconciled and talked about what happened with their family and children. It is important to acknowledge how these questions, and the responses, emphasize that healing takes time and, likewise, that writing about their experiences helps process what they went through.

“I wish you should continue to encourage these affected war victims so that they forget the past and look forward for new development and change their lives.” (Consy Ogwul, Grace Acan's mother, Kampala, 2019)

With Acan's and Amony's families present at events in Uganda, and with their families' inclusion in the exhibit, audiences were able to see the importance of supportive family systems in survivors' healing.
 
"Accept Reality"
Audiences acknowledged or made reference to the strength it takes for survivors to move forward. Acknowledging what happened, and accepting these events, are not only important for healing, but also for moving forward, for recognizing survivors’ agency. At the UNM event, one person drew links between surviving war and being HIV+:

Uh, me, I think one of the methods we can use is to accept reality. Accept what happened. You’re not going to change anything about it. It is you. It’s like, being a victim of war is like having HIV. When you go to the hospital they tell you to accept you are positive. So even if you are a victim, the best thing is to accept that this is me. And no one in the world is going to determine me, I’m going to determine me. No matter what happens. (Community Dialogue Participant, UNM, 6 December 2019)

Partnership
Through the exhibit and its associated events, a diverse audience becomes partners with Acan and Amony, as well as those they represent, in their journeys toward healing, justice and reparations.

As Acan stated at the CMHR panel,

“I'd like to thank each one of you for taking your time to come listen to our stories, and actually understand what really took place in Northern Uganda years ago, about 20 years ago. There is a saying that a problem shared is a problem half solved” (Acan, CMHR launch, 2019).