Read this excerpt from a Romanian Newspaper. The article was written
by Mr. Cornel Nistorescu and published under the title "C"ntarea Americii,
meaning "Ode To America") in the Romanian newspaper Evenimentulzilei "The
Daily Event" or "News of the Day".
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
~An Ode to America~
Why are Americans so united? They would not resemble one another even
if you painted them all one color! They speak all the languages of the world
and form an astonishing mixture of civilizations and religious beliefs.
Still, the American tragedy turned three hundred million people into a hand
put on the heart.
Nobody rushed to accuse the White House, the army, and the secret
services that they are only a bunch of losers. Nobody rushed to empty their
bank acco un t s. Nobody rushed out onto the streets nearby to gape about. The
Americans volunteered to donate blood and to give a helping hand.
After the first moments of panic, they raised their flag over the
smoking ruins, putting on T-shirts, caps and ties in the colors of the
national flag. They placed flags on buildings and cars as if in every place
and on every car a government official or the president was passing.
On every occasion, they started singing their traditional song:
"God Bless America!" I watched the live broadcast and rerun after
rerun for hours listening to the story of the guy who went down one hundred
floors with a woman in a wheelchair without knowing who she was, or of the
Californian hockey player, who gave his life fighting with the terrorists
and prevented the plane from hitting a target that could have killed other
hundreds or thousands of people.
How on earth were they able to respond united as one hum an being?
Imperceptibly, with every word and musical note, the memory of some
turned into a modern myth of tragic heroes. And with every phone call,
millions and millions of dollars were put in a collection aimed at rewarding
not a man or a family, but a spirit, which no money can buy.
What on earth can unite the Americans in such a way? Their land?
Their galloping history? Their economic Power? Money? I tried for hours to
find an answer, humming songs and murmuring phrases with the risk of
sounding commonplace.
I thought things over, but I reached only one conclusion... Only
freedom can work such miracles.
Cornel Nistorescu
And a special blessing to all the military!
Cee - I grew up in PG County and my parents lived there for over 50 years.
