By Qu Yingpu

A crucial part of the concept of intervention, according to "Leadership on the Line", a course I took at Harvard, is that it doesn't necessarily bring immediate effects. A foreseer's message, for example, may not be readily received by any - or all - when it is first communicated.

But so long as the seed is there, a plant will grow. What's more, with enough water, sunshine and care, it will grow well and ripen. The impact of messages, too, will reveal itself in the long run - once the messages stick.

Or, as philosophers like to put it, even a drop of water could become the ocean.

And that, I think, explains the point of this global odyssey of ours. Harmony is the message of the Beijing Olympic Torch Relay. The people who turned out to cheer along many of the 21 legs outside of the Chinese mainland readily accepted this message; others proved unready.

Either way, though, the seed has been planted, and at some point in the future, this message will go through and people will be ready to take it.

That said, I see the relay as a positive opportunity for China to examine its surrounding environment and how different nations see it as the country pursues sustainable development after decades of phenomenal economic growth.

By the same token, the endeavor also enables the world to reflect upon its views on China and learn of the increasingly outspoken Chinese voice.

For instance, in the context of the rising public awareness (and growing tension in a few areas) within China of the country's surrounding reality, the relay leaves plenty of room for those outside China to decide on what to do.

The world is becoming a village, but the water is still deep and wide. So how do we go ahead - by building bridges, tunnels or a boat to cross the river? Or simply shut our eyes, ignore what's really happening and cry wolf?

Indeed, to the extent that we have witnessed the frustration, anger and outcry of hundreds of millions of Chinese in China and overseas following chaos along some legs, the ultimate point is not to be angry. I experienced plenty of hurt and humiliation in the past month: violent window-poundings, frantic curses, obscene signs, just to name a few.