Pete loved painting flowers. He admired how they pushed through cracks, growing and blooming. But the poppy fascinated him most — beautiful, delicate, yet tied to immense destruction. Afghanistan grows most of the world’s opium, feeding a global trade that has sparked wars, fueled addiction, and shaped international politics for centuries. The British used opium to weaken China in the Opium Wars. Later, American foreign policy pressured countries like Iran and monitored Afghanistan to control the flow of opiates. To Pete, this little flower carried the weight of power, greed, and suffering, showing how something fragile could have such an impact on Global politics and relationships between countries.