Kim Phuc is a symbol of hope - Inspiring figure for Irish visit

One of the most inspiring figures of modern times is coming to Ireland next month with a message of hope and forgiveness.

Some people seek fame while others, like Vietnamese-born Kim Phuc Phan Thi, have it thrust upon them. She was barely nine years old when a photo of her running naked from a napalm attack during the Vietnam War caught the world’s attention. Crying, burned, and fleeing with other children away from the attack, she became emblematic of human suffering during the war. Her skin is still blistered from the napalm that hit her body and scorched off her clothes.

More than four decades on, she has become a symbol of not just endurance but of the power of the human spirit to rise above adversity. She has used the fame that came with that horrific moment to send a message of peace and forgiveness.

Now married with children and living in Canada, she travels the world to talk about the anger she left behind and how she found the courage to forgive those who disfigured her.

Anyone who is still blighted by hatred, bitterness, or resentment from a wrong done in the past would do well to hear her story on on Saturday, June 18, at the Immrama Festival of Travel Writing in Lismore, County Waterford.

Phuc is living testament to what is perhaps the greatest virtue of all — the ability to forgive without forgetting.