April snow nourishes the earth. This year, Paris’s spring arrived as if winter had not ended, appearing beyond imagination, especially with such coldness persisting past Easter. Since we are accustomed to winter anyway, naturally everyone was waiting for the arrival of sunny days. Although this winter was cold but saw no snow (Paris occasionally does see snow), I never expected that within these April days (late night of April 6 and early morning of the 7th) all areas north of the Loire River in France would be covered in a blanket of white snow. On the morning of the 7th, however, snowflakes were falling outside the window, covering the earth in a poetic layer of white. April snow should be a gift from heaven, adding charm to Parisian life and aesthetic beauty to late winter. Listening to the radio at breakfast, I heard that the Paris metropolitan highway was congested due to unexpected snow accumulation; the northern departments were all white. Could Christmas be approaching?

At this moment of spring snow, the Olympic torch’s world tour will pass through Paris this afternoon. From last night’s TV news reports, the torch’s passage through London was grand, yet instead of receiving positive cheers along the way, it faced protests from human rights groups and Tibet supporters, ending in a convoluted spectacle difficult to describe. This made the message and atmosphere of freedom and peace brought by this torch relay even more bizarre.

The solemn welcome ceremony for the torch arriving from afar in Paris today was even more dramatic. The fact that Paris security forces dispatched over three thousand military and police units to protect the torch revealed its imposing momentum, treated with the caution reserved for a super figure. This super star—the torch relay—began at the world-famous Eiffel Tower, passed through France 2 Television, the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Élysées, the Parliament, the Paris City Hall, and ended at the Charlety Stadium near the University City for the French Olympic Committee’s concluding ceremony. Unexpectedly, less than ten minutes after departing the Eiffel Tower, it was disrupted by demonstrators. Amidst chaos, the torch disappeared. With continuous incidents, like a game of hide-and-seek, the torch reappeared and shortened its route. It was greeted along the way by cheers from those waving red flags and boos from crowds protesting human rights and Tibet issues. Despite the ironclad police protection, incidents continued.

When the solemn torch passed the French Parliament, over fifty parliamentarians stood on the parliamentary walls holding banners advocating human rights and booing the torch. This unprecedented protest behavior took everyone by surprise. The torch team, in a state of bewilderment, stumbled into the Paris City Hall square. The mayor did not come out to greet it. Instead, a white cloth with black text reading “Paris Upholds Human Rights” was hung before the city hall building. Green Party council members also displayed Tibetan flags from the windows of the city hall. Amidst the chaos, the torch team departed, finally arriving at the French Olympic Committee after numerous twists and turns to end this bewildering torch relay ceremony. In this metropolis of human rights, Paris has shown the world the true meaning that while freedom is precious, human rights are of higher value (after all, what is freedom without human rights?). It is evident that this year’s Olympics posed the most arduous challenge for the host country. May the torch of freedom convey messages of peace, respect the excellent values of sport, and reunite the people of the world. Perhaps this is not an earthly utopia.