In the face of a tragedy, the evidences of those who have personally experienced pain or have lived it through the painful stories of their loved ones strike us much more than historical facts.

As human beings, it is impossible not to feel empathy for those who have suffered injustices and abuses or who have sacrificed their own lives for the cause they believed in. Thus, even in the darkest moments, relationships are established and ties are tightened, one's ethics is allowed to prevail over ideologies and fear, glimmers of light and hope can be glimpsed.

In commemorating the Acqui Division, the human closeness shown by the people of Kefalonia should be remembered as much as the sad story of the Italian soldiers. There are endless tales of the islanders who hid, protected, fed the Italian soldiers at the risk of their own lives. Equally numerous are the painful stories of those who have lost family members due to the reprisals of the Germans. Despite the war and the invading role of the Italians, the militaries of the Acqui Division are not remembered with anger and contempt, but with the smile that is dedicated to young people far from their country, more men than soldiers, capable of acts of kindness and to make themselves loved.