How do you explain it?

I have friends from all over the world thanks to the internet. Over the years it's been interesting listening to how other countries percieve us here in the good old USA. I remember, when I first went to Sweden, I was surprised to hear that over all they saw the US as an overly religiously preoccupied country. I didn't see it. Certainly, I am not overly religious. In fact, I am not religious at all. And though I have friends and family that are religious, I've never felt it was overt. Yet, I can see how that perception started when I watch the media, our politicians, and see how religion does infiltrate areas of our lives whether we subscribe or not. In god we trust...vodee oh do do!

Last night, when it was announced that Navy Seals had killed Osama bin Laden I have to admit I was amazed and thrilled. I clearly remember the fear and unrest we all felt on September 11. 2001. It was an act of terrorism that shook us to our core. I remember wanting to be home among my loved ones and stay close to what I knew to be good and true because it felt like all the goodness and truth in the world blew up when those planes hit the World Trade Center. So hearing bin Laden was dead was some sort of closure. Then today, on facebook, I read some of the statuses of my friends from over seas. They didn't share my relief. In fact, they felt very much that this was just one more dead man, more blood on the hands of America. I get where that comes from, I really do. I mean, I am not convinced that our troops in Iraq has ever been a good thing or necessary. I question our foreign policy in so many ways and think that we have always been quick to act in a military stance when it was that we had something to gain. But to read the words of my friends who were equating bin Laden with just so much US propogana...well, to tell you the truth, that hurt a little. I don't expect them to celebrate. I'm not really celebrating this myself. It seems wrong to celebrate someone's death even if he was a terrorist monster. But some understanding would have been nice.

I haven't said anything to these friends yet. Mostly because I just don't know what to say. I certainly don't want to get into some kind of patriotic pissing match with them. That's just not my style. I guess I get tired of always being seen as the "greedy American", the "ugly American", the "War mongering American", the "useless American". It's easy to point the finger at the bad stuff and negate all of the good the US does all over the world. At the very least, on a personal friendly level, give me a break. And let me have this moment of relief.

More ramblings from my past...

Here is another essay I wrote. This one from 1999 or so...

For a time, I was working as the Program Manager for a residential care company. Part of this job meant I was "on call" and had to go in and substitute if one of my workers called in sick. I can't say I minded it much though because I've always loved the direct client contact. Sometimes, the residents of the home were more perceptive than they were given credit for. One resident came to us in a very serious state of mind. She was born with Down Syndrome and was exhibiting the early stages of Alzheimer's. Most of the time, she was fine but occasionally she would become very confused, disoriented and forgetful. On one such occasion, she began yelling at the top of her lungs at 8am and continued throughout the day.

This was, of course, was disrupting all of the other residents and they were getting agitated. In an effort to calm her down I sat with her and talked in a calm, soothing voice. Every time I spoke she would stop but when I stopped speaking her screaming would resume. I was getting frustrated but continued to try to calm her down. Finally, I began asking her questions in an attempt to get a verbal response. When I asked, "What's your name?" She responded appropriately. When I asked her, "What's my name?" She yelled out, "DUMMY!"

We all got a good laugh about that and she finally stopped yelling. The funny part of all of this is that the next day when I arrived for work she came out of her room all smiles and full of greetings for the staff. She went up to each one of them and saying, "Good morning, Carrie. Good morning, Alice." etc, etc....until she got to me. She took my hand, looked me right in the eyes and said...


"Good morning, DUMMY!"

And she called me that every day for the rest of her stay at that home!