True Confession.
Last week, I received an email entitled 'Stupid Quiz'. I usually delete that kind of mail; the memes and the "send this to ten friends" stuff. But I filled this one out and returned to sender.
One of the questions asked, "When was the last time you cried?" And I had to say it was upon seeing the footage of the Hudson River crash.
I am a sentimental fool. The reason I got emotional was because everybody involved was so selfless. Everyone seemed to come together to do all the right things. The pilot (wow!), the flight attendants, the ferry boats captains, the passengers on the plane and the ferries. Why this makes me weep, I don't know.
I was reminded of another airplane crash, several years ago. Helicopters were rescuing the victims and one man kept passing the life line to others in order that they could get out of the icy water before him. In the end, that man perished. Those are the heros I admire. The ones that just do what seems right, no matter the personal cost. I imagine that soldiers are the same way.
I hope that the people of America can do the same kind of thing in the coming four years to get our nation back on the right track.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I get weepy at small gestures. Around here, we pull to the side of the road and stop when we encounter a funeral procession, in respect for the family. Nobody honks or complains that this stupid thing is making them late for something.
At my own mother's funeral, in 1974, the sight of the policeman placing his hat over his heart as our cortege passed made me lose it more than anything else in the previous week. That man didn't know me or my family, but his simple act of respect remains with me to this day.
2 comments:
And those were just a few of the reasons I love you.
I totally understand. It's those small gestures, I think, that remind us of our common humanity. I remember one when my younger daughter was six weeks old and went to the hospital with a very high fever (like 105). They thought she might have meningitis, and I held it together through a spinal tap and admitting her to the hospital and everything, until a nurse asked me if I'd had anything to eat in the last four hours of testing and everything, and when I said no, she and the other nurses raided their own snack stashes to feed me. That's when I cried. Thanks for a great post.
Post a Comment