My Darling Americans,
This is a letter of love and respect to you, the people of a great country. You are fortunate enough to live in a land that has the most beautiful, breath taking and diverse scenery. From the beauty of the shell strewn beaches in Sanibel Island, the magnificence of your Rocky and Appalachian mountain ranges to the sheer awesomeness of the Grand Canyon. From the rolling prairies in the Midwest to the throbbing, alive and exciting cities. Your land once meant safety and refuge to people scattered from all corners of the globe. To arrive in New York after fleeing horrors from their own lands and see the Statue of Liberty proudly holding her torch bearing the words ‘Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore’ meant freedom and hope for those poor wretches.
You are still a relatively young nation that was built from the bloodshed and defeat of the British. Your Presidents have (mostly) been men of integrity; your constitution speaks of freedom, fairness and dignity for its citizens. You have no class system and every one of your fellow countrymen and women have the chance and are indeed encouraged to become so much more and reach higher for themselves. Your President does not have to be born into a certain family in order to be considered to have the ‘right to rule’ which is still true in Britain. You are a nation of a melting pot of cultures which makes for interesting conversation, appreciating other people, fascinating experiences and a chance to learn and broaden the mind.
You have been innovators; it was two American brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright that are credited with inventing, building and flying the first aeroplane. The first country to successfully send men to walk on the moon, an incredible feat considering the technology at the time. A proud moment of American history when the whole world watched as Neil Armstrong set his foot down on the surface of the moon and uttered the words “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” It was a symbolic moment in the history of the United States when the last racial barrier in American politics was overcome. Just 143 years earlier, the man who would now hold the supreme office in U.S. government could have been a possession, another man’s property. President-elect Obama said, “If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer”. That’s the America I know and admire.
I love, love, love America. I have sat high in the saddle in the Rockies and on the gentle rolling hills in south western Texas, water rafted through the Grand Canyon and danced to the pulsating Latin beat in Miami. I have sat on your beaches both on the east and west coasts and travelled to and experienced most states in between. I fell in love with your beautiful country and the energy of your people a long time ago and one day choose to leave my beloved but cold and damp Britain to retire to Scottsdale, Arizona and spend the last years of my life warming my old bones under the warm Southwestern sun.
You have so much as a nation of which to be proud and I for one cannot wait to visit once again but I ask only this of you; do not let fear rule you, do not see yourselves as separate from your fellow American or fellow human beings, no matter what colour, religious belief or political leaning. Do not drown in terror of the unknown and reach for the wrong life buoy to save you. Your nation and its people are at a tipping point, you have a choice to either live in darkness and fear and tread on one another in the haste to ‘survive’ or you can choose to reach out your hand and lift your neighbours and your perceived enemies into the light of truth, integrity, honesty and most importantly love. I trust you will make the right choice.
With all my love and respect for every one of you,
Claire H Perkins
This is a letter of love and respect to you, the people of a great country. You are fortunate enough to live in a land that has the most beautiful, breath taking and diverse scenery. From the beauty of the shell strewn beaches in Sanibel Island, the magnificence of your Rocky and Appalachian mountain ranges to the sheer awesomeness of the Grand Canyon. From the rolling prairies in the Midwest to the throbbing, alive and exciting cities. Your land once meant safety and refuge to people scattered from all corners of the globe. To arrive in New York after fleeing horrors from their own lands and see the Statue of Liberty proudly holding her torch bearing the words ‘Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore’ meant freedom and hope for those poor wretches.
You are still a relatively young nation that was built from the bloodshed and defeat of the British. Your Presidents have (mostly) been men of integrity; your constitution speaks of freedom, fairness and dignity for its citizens. You have no class system and every one of your fellow countrymen and women have the chance and are indeed encouraged to become so much more and reach higher for themselves. Your President does not have to be born into a certain family in order to be considered to have the ‘right to rule’ which is still true in Britain. You are a nation of a melting pot of cultures which makes for interesting conversation, appreciating other people, fascinating experiences and a chance to learn and broaden the mind.
You have been innovators; it was two American brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright that are credited with inventing, building and flying the first aeroplane. The first country to successfully send men to walk on the moon, an incredible feat considering the technology at the time. A proud moment of American history when the whole world watched as Neil Armstrong set his foot down on the surface of the moon and uttered the words “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” It was a symbolic moment in the history of the United States when the last racial barrier in American politics was overcome. Just 143 years earlier, the man who would now hold the supreme office in U.S. government could have been a possession, another man’s property. President-elect Obama said, “If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer”. That’s the America I know and admire.
I love, love, love America. I have sat high in the saddle in the Rockies and on the gentle rolling hills in south western Texas, water rafted through the Grand Canyon and danced to the pulsating Latin beat in Miami. I have sat on your beaches both on the east and west coasts and travelled to and experienced most states in between. I fell in love with your beautiful country and the energy of your people a long time ago and one day choose to leave my beloved but cold and damp Britain to retire to Scottsdale, Arizona and spend the last years of my life warming my old bones under the warm Southwestern sun.
You have so much as a nation of which to be proud and I for one cannot wait to visit once again but I ask only this of you; do not let fear rule you, do not see yourselves as separate from your fellow American or fellow human beings, no matter what colour, religious belief or political leaning. Do not drown in terror of the unknown and reach for the wrong life buoy to save you. Your nation and its people are at a tipping point, you have a choice to either live in darkness and fear and tread on one another in the haste to ‘survive’ or you can choose to reach out your hand and lift your neighbours and your perceived enemies into the light of truth, integrity, honesty and most importantly love. I trust you will make the right choice.
With all my love and respect for every one of you,
Claire H Perkins