Today the US pauses (I hope) to remember the 43rd anniversary of the assasination of President John F Kennedy. I realize that this event took place before some of you were born, but still we remember. I recall sitting in 10th grade English class when we were interrupted by the announcement of the shooting and that school would end early (of course it was last period, so we only got out a few minutes early). We were told to go to our lockers in silence, get our things, and go home. What an eerie feeling to see hundreds of high schoolers in the hallways and yet hardly hear a sound. It was as though the whole nation was in slow motion and silence. The film footage is still burned in the memories of many of us -- the Lincoln limo, the pink dress on Mrs. Kennedy, the book depository, Lee Harvey Oswald, Jack Ruby, and more. The days that followed were weird -- the funeral, the years of investigation -- we still can't all agree on who did it or why. Whatever the reason and whoever the perpetrator (a lone killer or a plot), it was a sad day and a great loss to our nation. In those days, it seemed that people were kinder to one another -- we were all impacted by a common bond of tragedy. Just as the folks of today will remember 9/11 and the horrid experiences of that day, so to we of the little bit older generation remember 11/22. I wonder what direction the nation would have taken had Kennedy's presidency not been cruelly cut short. Would things be better? Worse? Tha same? We will never know because someone took matters in his/their own hands and stole from us a precious resource. Today I remember a nation in mourning, the Kennedy family with its many tragedies, and my own personal sense of loss in that day.
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Another Anniversary
Today the US pauses (I hope) to remember the 43rd anniversary of the assasination of President John F Kennedy. I realize that this event took place before some of you were born, but still we remember. I recall sitting in 10th grade English class when we were interrupted by the announcement of the shooting and that school would end early (of course it was last period, so we only got out a few minutes early). We were told to go to our lockers in silence, get our things, and go home. What an eerie feeling to see hundreds of high schoolers in the hallways and yet hardly hear a sound. It was as though the whole nation was in slow motion and silence. The film footage is still burned in the memories of many of us -- the Lincoln limo, the pink dress on Mrs. Kennedy, the book depository, Lee Harvey Oswald, Jack Ruby, and more. The days that followed were weird -- the funeral, the years of investigation -- we still can't all agree on who did it or why. Whatever the reason and whoever the perpetrator (a lone killer or a plot), it was a sad day and a great loss to our nation. In those days, it seemed that people were kinder to one another -- we were all impacted by a common bond of tragedy. Just as the folks of today will remember 9/11 and the horrid experiences of that day, so to we of the little bit older generation remember 11/22. I wonder what direction the nation would have taken had Kennedy's presidency not been cruelly cut short. Would things be better? Worse? Tha same? We will never know because someone took matters in his/their own hands and stole from us a precious resource. Today I remember a nation in mourning, the Kennedy family with its many tragedies, and my own personal sense of loss in that day.
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I am from that generation that marks time as "before JFK's assassination" and "after", such was its impact. Over 40 years later, I remember vividly where I was when it happened. The world has seemed much darker since then.
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