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“What floor, please?” said the elevator man.
“Any floor,” said Mr. In. “Top floor,” said Mr. Out. “This is the top floor,” said the elevator man. “Have another floor put on,” said Mr. Out. “Higher,” said Mr. In. “Heaven,” said Mr. Out. This is from an article written by F. Scott Fitzgerald in “May Day,” 1920, in reference to the ambitious project of the Empire State building, the tallest building of the world, which some years later would be surpassed in grandiosity and altitude by the Twin Towers, the new symbol of New York City and center of the world trade commerce. Now, 19 days after the collapse of these famous symbols, when two aircraft rammed into and destroyed both buildings, the center of the economy of the United States, my peace of mind and my heart are gone. My view of the world has changed forever. I thought that security, freedom and the right to pursue a better way of living were granted. Not long ago, my family and I came to this country, among other reasons, pursuing the intangible, but always present, protection of a great government. Ever since I remember, one of my brightest dreams was to live in the USA. I felt secure knowing that Mexico, my country of origin, was the closest neighbor to the south of the object of my dreams. This feeling grew bigger every time the U.S government handed us help when my country was in trouble, I got to drink the milk, wear the clothes and play with the toys that we received from international help. How could I ever forget that? How could other countries forget that? I loved the mystery of the language, the guttural sound of the “r”, and the amiable attitude of the American people, so distant and at the same time, care-giving and protective. Then I discovered that not only protection, but freedom was another treasure of this country. I used to think of unfortunate countries that do not grant their residents the right of expression, or even to dress the way they want to. Here I found that I could have dyed my hair pink if I wanted to and nobody would care about it. There was so much freedom, but it was impossible for me to break a taboo or get a pink head because the repression of self-expression and need to act within established social parameters were so deep in my mind that was difficult to get rid of these feelings. Still, blessed freedom allowed me to read interesting books and materials that I otherwise wouldn’t have read for they were hard to obtain. I have been able even to be present, through televised sessions, in the conferences of the chamber of Congress when thay are making decisions; I have been active in knowing the many propositions and participating in the realization of them. It is just wonderful. Since security and freedom are two of the biggest concerns that I have, I feel that since September 11, my right to pursue a better way of living and new opportunities in whatever place I want, has been taken away. Not only have the attacks of September 11 taken away my sense of security and freedom, but also our way of making a living. Together with the towers, our economy went down, leaving us with the dream of a better living stamped in our hearts, thinking of begining all over again. I ask myself what we can do to go on with our lives. It is just outrageous that some extremists guided by some mad man who does not respect the rights and lives of his own race would think that they have the right to inflict such pain on people of peace. Where can we be secure? They have wounded the symbol of power; they have wounded not only a nation, but our human rights to live in peace and harmony. I realize that in spite of what happened on Sept. 11, there is no better place anywhere than here because terrorism can occur at any place at any time, waiting for you to have some dreams and ambitions. Terrorism has just won a battle. The way to recovery might be long, if there will be a full recovery, but my heart and my soul will be always here, because this nation gave me the opportunity to grow. For me, the world will be pretty much the same, made of patches of changing land with diffused borders; it is my heart that is hurting, yet my feelings are stronger than ever. I will stand strong because there is still a dream that I need to catch. |