The evening I visited the 9/11 Memorial in February of 2019, light rain started falling as I exited the building. I walked around the dedication to those lost on that horrific day nearly 23 years ago. Decisions made by those trapped were even more impactful when I saw the vastness of the area and could see for myself the heights of the buildings based on One World Trade Center next door to the memorial.
When you’re young and learning about history in school, you tend to read the few paragraphs in your schoolbook and move on without much feeling. I’m sure I was that way when I learned about the Civil War, WWI, and WWII.
Being married to a Vietnam Veteran for 25 years opened my eyes to the true impact on someone who lived it.
The same can be said for those in NYC, Washington DC, and Pennsylvania, who were there and saw things unfold before their eyes. I only saw it on the screen and know the impact it had on me.
Today, I was picking herbs from my garden. I walked into the door when my husband called me into the living room to tell me former President Donald Trump had just been shot at a rally. He had read it on his phone and was turning the news on the television.
Much like I learned about 9/11, I watched the story unfold before my eyes on the screen. I heard the popping sound coming through the TV speakers, as the former President grabbed at his right ear and dropped below the podium. The Secret Service arrived swiftly, and I felt such relief when Mr. Trump could stand, wave at the crowd, and walk away.
In those quick seconds of watching this happen, I suddenly thought back to the 1960’s when three leaders were assassinated a few years apart. With tears in my eyes, I found myself asking what was happening?
While the newscast was on, I checked social media to see if I could learn more news. Some of it was kind and some of it was ugly.
One comment on the social media channel X caught my eye. It was from someone who is running for president, as an opponent to both the current President and the former President. Robert Kennedy, Jr. was 10 when his uncle, President John F. Kennedy, was assassinated. Only a few years later, he was with his father, Senator Robert Kennedy, when he was assassinated.
Robert Kennedy, Jr.’s words, “Now is the time for every American who loves our country to step back from the division, renounce all violence, and unite in prayer for President Trump and his family.”
Also on X, the 4th most popular thing trending right after the assassination attempt was “Civil War.” This is NOT something we should want to ever see trending in the United States of America. I took a screen shot of it, as it was hard for me to believe what I was reading.
Post on X after the assassination attempt.
An American citizen lost their life for attending a political rally and two others were injured, aside from the former President. Some family will have to face the news that they have lost a loved one. I pray the two others who were injured survive. They all attended something many of us have attended ourselves in our lives. This could have happened to any of us.
I ask you to harken back to a time when U.S. citizens worked together for the good of the country and not based on party lines. Can you even remember that time?
For me, it was September 12, 2001. That was 23 years ago, almost a quarter of a century. How sad that I had to go back more than two decades. Our country came together as one nation that day and it lasted for a little while. We were not Democrat against Republican or Us vs. Them, we WERE Americans.
On this 248th year of our nation, I pray we will come together again to say this has to stop on all sides. I also pray we never forget how truly blessed we are to live in this great country. Have we forgotten? I pray that is not the case.
I recently completed a couple of weeks of business travel. My last stop was five days in Las Vegas, Nevada, for an international conference. As I always do when I hit the road, I took a huge number of photos of the trip, trying to capture the architecture of Vegas, both inside and out, and the various casinos that pattern the skyline in such a dramatic fashion.
One of my favorite spots was The Bellagio, a beautiful property, known for its famous Fountains of Bellagio experience, offered daily every 30 minutes in the afternoons and evenings.
While the fountain show was incredible, the inside of the hotel/casino was even more spectacular. On my first day, I walked over to the lobby and enjoying the beautiful fall colors before I even made it through the revolving doors. Like a pied piper, the decorations lead me to a fairy land of delight. I captured photo after photo of tiny characters living under toadstools and in trees, while animal characters slept on rocks by flowing rivers. The words of Roald Dahl, who wrote Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, came to mind while I was exploring the fantasy world The Bellagio had created, “If you want to view Paradise, simply look around and view it.” It truly was spectacular.
The city in the evening is stunning with the beautiful neon lighting up the night from Paris Las Vegas to the Hard Rock Cafe to Planet Hollywood. Day or night, you can view art at Caesar’s Palace or take a gondola ride at the Venetian. There truly seems to be something for everyone…well, it would seem.
Because I’d been trying to get 10,000 steps in per day, I walked a LOT along the streets of Sin City. In the pictures I’ve shared here and others I shared on social media posts, you might not notice the way I cropped some of them. I was purposeful with my cropping. I thought I’d done a good job of hiding something I didn’t want to share. However, in looking at my cropped photos, I found one I thought made a particular statement. If you look closely at the photo below I snapped in the middle of the day, you might notice something a little different from the rest. At the bottom of the iconic golden arches of McDonalds, a person is sleeping on the artificial grass. As someone who has a tough time falling asleep in the best of conditions, I couldn’t imagine how anyone could sleep in the desert heat with the daily noise surrounding them. Did this person come to Vegas looking for their golden ticket?
In the photo below of The Mirage and its lovely water feature, I was literally two feet away from a man sleeping on the concrete using a partially-full 12 pack of beer as a pillow. Steps away from him slept another man in the shade of a walking bridge and across from him was a man sleeping on the floor of an opulent glass elevator used to take people up one floor to the afore mentioned bridge. The irony of the advertisement for The Beatles Love by Cirque du Soleil wasn’t lost on me, nor was the beauty of the water and sky, knowing I was beside a man choosing a concrete sidewalk as his bed for the evening.
Right under the perfume bottle of Chanel and other celebrity fashion designers and restauranteurs scattered throughout the city was a dirty little secret. In the early morning hours, while most were sleeping after a long night of celebrating, gambling, and going to shows, the street sweepers and leaf-blowers were removing, not leaves, but the pamphlets, flyers, and baseball-style, escort cards from the night before, given out by the porn slappers and show pushers. I watched as the garbage was blown toward these individuals, either choosing to be homeless or forced into it by decisions made in their pasts. I was immediately saddened by the entire situation. Saddened, but, ashamedly, not enough to offer any assistance to those who most definitely appeared to be in need.
I know I have prejudices or biases toward people who “portray” themselves as homeless and I’m not too ashamed to admit it. Some of that comes from working in Austin a few years ago. On my commute to work, I saw a very pregnant looking woman holding a sign stating she was nine months pregnant. The first time I saw her, the light was green and I kept going. The next few weeks, I continued to see her. She was nine months pregnant for more than six months on the same corner. Her sign alone left a bad taste in my mouth, as I knew it wasn’t true.
Another man had a picture of his two-year-old son who was terminally ill with cancer. Throughout the four years I worked in the city, I saw this man with the same sign. The child’s age never changed, nor did his picture. Did the man even have a child? I have no idea but because he never made corrections to the sign, I found it hard to believe him. I hope, if he did have a son, that the young boy is okay.
I share this with you as a reflection on myself and us as a nation. I recently watched as the border in my home state of Texas has been dealing with immigration challenges. Thousands of Haitians were under a bridge in the town of Del Rio. I have friends who protested a similar situation about the way people were being treated under the Trump administration and other friends who remained silent. The same friends who protested the treatment under President Trump have said nothing under President Biden and those who were quiet under President Trump are now being vocal under President Biden. Instead of focusing on how to fix the situation, we’re focusing on whether there is a D or an R in front of the leadership’s name. Much like my photos, we’re cropping out the situation to focus on something totally different.
I’m unsure about the way things need to be addressed with the homeless and those who are trying to get into the U.S., but I recognize something needs to be done. I am guilty of casting my eyes in the other direction. In Las Vegas, a stranger passed me as we both looked at a man sleeping on the sidewalk. He asked me, “Is he okay?” I responded, “Not sure.” We then both passed the man, not stopping to find out for sure. When I went by that same spot a few hours later, the man was gone. My hope is he found food, water, and shelter, but I have no way of knowing for sure.
On my final night in Las Vegas, I saw the Statue of Liberty at New York, New York and it gave me pause. I was surrounded by buildings that cost millions and millions of dollars to construct. The city was lit up like a Christmas tree. Visitors were everywhere and we were walking past those living on the streets, as if they didn’t exist. A song came to my head by the singer Christine Lavin. It’s called Somebody’s Baby. Part of the lyrics are “That’s when I saw her all dirty and ragged, drinking a bottle of wine. I turned my head, walked right on by, but one thing stayed in my mind. She once was Somebodys Baby. Someone bounced her on his knee. Do you think he has any idea, what his little girl has turned out to be?”
The Bellagio decorations of tiny fairies living under toadstools and animals sleeping on rocks offered a vast contrast to those living on sidewalks and sleeping under bridges.
I will admit to enjoying my time in Las Vegas, much like people enjoy their time in my city when they are visiting. However, the memory of those I saw on the streets the five days I was there are heavy on my heart. We have some of those same people here, as do most cities and towns across this great nation. Many are known to suffer from mental illness, but we sweep that thought away and choose not to address it as a nation as much as I believe we should. It is uncomfortable and we are a people who like and are accustomed to our comforts.
Perhaps it’s time for us to come together to address these needs as a united voice and not a D or an R or even those who are unaffiliated. As I shared earlier, I’m unsure how but the blame game has got to stop. It is rampant and we are not seeking to understand. We don’t seem to want to understand. How nice would it be for us to find a solution. We should seek to, as Roald Dahl wrote, “So shines a good deed in a weary world.” How can we provide the good deed? I’m open to suggestions and to ALL of us listening to each other to find the answers.
The following have been my Presidents, whether I voted for them or not, since I was of legal age to vote.
President Ronald Reagan (R) President George H.W. Bush (R) President Bill Clinton (D) President George W. Bush (R) President Barack Obama (D) President Donald Trump (R) President ??? (R or D)
I don’t know what the outcome of this year’s vote will be, but whoever it is, they will be my President.
That said, because I voted, I have the RIGHT to disagree with how they are running our country. I have the RIGHT to stand up when I disagree. I have the RIGHT to protest when I disagree.
I do not have the RIGHT to loot, threaten, or seek out violence against others because they voted differently. I do not have the RIGHT to threaten them or damage their property. I do not have the RIGHT to threaten my elected officials.
YOU have the RIGHT to disagree with me…because we live in the United States of America, no matter now divided the vote.
I will STILL respect the office of the President, even if I DON’T respect who’s sitting in the seat.
Views from My Veranda 