Emerging Courageous Online Magazine - Stories

I AM AN AMERICAN………

          I am an American, a citizen of the United States of America, born into this citizenship and will die as a citizen of the United States of America.  If I had been born in France or Germany or South America, I would have always considered myself a citizen of that country.  I am an American, and I always have been proud to be an American - the same as other people here or abroad are proud of their heritage.  But I am not always proud of everything we do just as I am not always proud of myself and everything I do.  I will always believe in the essence of democracy and freedom.  But also knowing that no one, no culture, no country can be totally free.  In being totally free one would give up dependence on others and their dependence on us.  And this would make a terrible world.  I feel that we Americans with our free enterprise, our capitalism, our crazy consumerism have become a runaway nation – more is good, and even more is for sure better –  We, the consumer, place the blame on business; business places the blame on the consumer.  And the workplace has become so hectic, so frantic.   Most people would have to say they do not enjoy their jobs, like them maybe, but not much joy.  And certainly not enough time left over to really enjoy the rest of life.  Most of our young people look to education to enable them to make lots of money.  That has become the goal, not just money to make a living but much, much money.  And then came Tuesday morning, September 11, 2001.  Now we all have a very different perspective – more doesn’t matter.  People matter, relationships matter, family matters. But perhaps deep down we know these things have always mattered more than anything else – if not, why would husbands, wives, children be calling from doomed planes to just tell someone how much he or she loves them.  Why would the police and firemen of New York City keep going back into the rubble time after time.  Maybe this tragedy will make us slow down and feel again, slow down and live again.  I am an American but I do not wish for revenge. I do not want more people killed.  I wish and I pray for ways to be found to rid our world of the atrocities that are committed, have been committed for years and years.  I am an American and I have been made to understand some of the horror that other people live with every day, year in and year out.  There’s nothing like walking in another’s shoes and that’s a little of what we have done since Tuesday morning, September 11, 2001.  I am an American and I know that the United States of America is not perfect, not always right.  I am myself, and I know I am not perfect, not always right.  But I have faith in America, and I have faith in myself.  But my faith is even bigger than that, I have faith in God’s world.                                   

Betty Gibbs, 9/18/01(c)   [email protected]