by Mary Wakefield Buxton –
URBANNA —
Why, of all the nations and territories of the world since the beginning of the human story, why did the United States rise to such a degree of greatness? How of the billions of people in the world was I so fortunate to be born an American?
Yet America isn’t perfect. What nation is perfect? What person is perfect? Who amongst us is a perfect American?
I often think of President Kennedy’s famous quote in 1961 that we Americans should ask not what our country can do for us but rather what can we do for our country. Americans may have lost that part of the equation, that life is a two-way street, that we don’t just get from government but we also must give?
In spite of man’s eternal quest to seek Utopia, I don’t believe we can ever create a “perfect” government. No matter how hard we try, and we do keep trying, there will always be some who feel they are not getting a fair deal. But that doesn’t mean we can’t continue to try to improve our system. We can appreciate what we have, however, as we work to make improvements, for example, millions living under totalitarian systems would literally die for our Bill of Rights.
Protest is fine, in my younger days I used to “crash” Rotary Club meetings in attempts to open up civic clubs to women. But I didn’t burn down Rotary clubs or attack Rotarians. I just sat down beside them, smiled and told them I wanted to join the club. They said no at the time because I was a woman … but folded quickly under gentle persuasion.
If I were protesting today I would organize my troops to do something positive for my community in the name of the goal I was seeking. For example, pick up trash, deliver food to the needy… positive action for a cause gains sympathy. Rioting, destroying property and other acts of violence do not.
Our good fortune in living in the USA is not a right or entitlement. It is simply luck that we live a better life in every respect than millions the world over. Americans live like kings compared to others. Should we feel some appreciation?
Yet, we all come to realize our good fortune, each at his or her own pace. For me, this epiphany came at 21 while standing at the U.S. Naval landing in Naples, Italy, where I was about to meet a college friend (who later became my husband) who was then an ensign in the U.S. Navy. I looked out on Naples Bay and saw the 6th U.S. Naval fleet spread across the horizon with white lights strung on each ship from bow to stern including the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Enterprise and her 16-ship task force. What a sight! I was still very young and on a job related tour of Europe but I knew grandeur when I saw it.
Suddenly it hit me that I was so lucky to be American and a citizen of the most powerful nation in the world. The fleet spread out before me not only kept peace in Europe, but protected every American in the area. It was a Wow! Wow! Wow! experience.
Later, in 1965, at 24, married and returning with my infant child, Liz, from military duty in Japan, I wept when I deplaned at Travis Air Force Base in San Francisco. Yes, I got down on my exhausted, poor travel worn knees and kissed the United States ground. Corny? Maybe, by some standards. But not mine. That’s how I felt about coming home.
You see, I knew my family’s history. My great-grandfather came to the U.S. with his family from England on the “China” in 1872. It was his second attempt to make it in America. On an earlier trip during the Civil War he almost starved while looking for work walking across Pennsylvania. He was poor, uneducated, hardworking and ambitious. He succeeded on his second try. America gave him opportunity. You’ll never find me disrespecting this country.
I love America and I cherish our nation’s history. It’s the story of our humble beginnings; how all Americans from all points on the globe evolved into who we are today. Without our history, mainly the story of the suffering of our ancestors wanting a better life, we don’t know where we came from, what we have become or even where we are going. We don’t even realize we are the most fortunate people that walk this earth.
Note: My sympathy to Urbanna neighbors Rick and Vicky for the loss of their beloved golden retriever “Lance” last week. He was a wonderful dog and well-loved in the neighborhood.
© 2020
