In fifteen years, one could well say tomorrow, we will enter into the twenty-first century and at the same time cross into a new millennium: the third since the birth of Christ. So the calendar is composed, dates are imposed on us to which we often attach a symbolic value. We celebrate the new year as a happy occasion, full of promises. We exchange wishes of prosperity, health and happiness with our relations and friends. Yet an anniversary is also the (...) opportunity to turn back, to stop for a moment at the roadside and consider the journey so far accomplished. (shrink)