With this sentence, Michael got to the heart of the story: "There are secrets in those silences."
As I hear back from readers--and thank you, everyone who takes the time to contact me--I recognize that many have questions like this one: "But what was THE CAUSE of the Finnish Civil War?"
That's such a difficult question to answer. I can only return to the scene in which Jussi first hears of Finland's December 6 Declaration of Independence, after the long years of The Great War, what we (sadly) have re-named World War I.
[Jussi's] mind was full of thoughts of war. The Reds would think that the country had been given to them; the Whites would think it was theirs.
The early years of the 20th century were a time of great social change. The early years of the 21st century have been, as well. Let's all hope that we can resolve differences in ways that don't require us to stay silent.