Here is a reprint of an editorial from a Romanian Newspaper that was circulated by the US Forces Command Public Affairs Office. The language is occasionally awkward due to translation, but the meaning is unmistakable.

An Ode to America

Why are Americans so united? They don't resemble one another even if you paint them! They speak all the languages of the world and form an astonishing mixture of civilizations. Some of them are nearly extinct, others are incompatible with one another, and in matters of religious beliefs, not even God can count how many they are.

Still, the American tragedy turned almost three hundred million people into a hand put on the heart. Nobody rushed to accuse the White House, the army, the secret services that they are only a bunch of losers. Nobody rushed to empty their bank accounts. Nobody rushed on the streets nearby to gape about. The Americans volunteered to donate blood and to give a helping hand. After the first moments of panic, they raised the flag on the smoking ruins, putting on t-shirts, caps and ties in the colors of the national flag. They placed flags on buildings and cars as if in every place and on every car a minister or the president was passing. On every occasion they started singing their traditional song: "God Bless America!"

Silent as a rock, I watched the charity concert broadcast on Saturday once, twice, three times, on different TV channels. There were Clint Eastwood, Willie Nelson, Robert deNiro, Julia Roberts, Cassius Clay, Jack Nicholson, Bruce Springsteen, Sylvester Stallone, James Wood, and many others whom no film or producers could ever bring together. The American's solidarity spirit turned them into a choir.

Actually, choir is not the word. What you could hear was the heavy artillery of the American soul. What neither George W. Bush, nor Bill Clinton, nor Colin Powell could say without facing the risk of stumbling over words and sounds, was being heard in a great and unmistakable way in this charity concert. I don't know how it happened that all this obsessive singing for America didn't sound croaky, nationalist, or ostentatious! It made you green with envy because you weren't able to sing for your country without running the risk of being read chauvinist, ridiculous, or suspected of who-knows-what mean interests.

I watched the live broadcast and the rerun of its rerun for hours listening to the story of the guy who went down one hundred floors with a woman in a wheelchair without knowing who she was, or of the Californian hockey player, who fought with the terrorists and prevented the plane from hitting a target that would have killed other hundreds or thousands of people. How on earth were they able to bow before a fellow human? Imperceptibly, with every word and musical note, the memory of some turned into a modern myth of tragic heroes. And with every phone call, millions and millions of dollars were put in a collection aimed at rewarding not a man or a family, but a spirit, which nothing can buy.

What on earth can unite the Americans in such a way? Their land? Their galloping history? Their economic power? Money? I tried for hours to find an answer, humming songs and murmuring phrases, which risk of sounding like commonplaces. I thought things over, but I reached only one conclusion.

Only freedom can work such miracles.

In memory of all those who perished this morning; the passengers and the pilots on the United Air and AA flights, the workers in the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and all the innocent bystanders. Our prayers go out to the friends and families of the deceased.

IF I KNEW

If I knew it would be the last time
That I'd see you fall asleep,
I would tuck you in more tightly
and pray the Lord, your soul to keep.

If I knew it would be the last time
that I see you walk out the door,
I would give you a hug and kiss
and call you back for one more.

If I knew it would be the last time
I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise,
I would video tape each action and word,
so I could play them back day after day.

If I knew it would be the last time,
I could spare an extra minute
to stop and say "I love you,"
instead of assuming you would KNOW I do.

If I knew it would be the last time
I would be there to share your day,
Well I'm sure you'll have so many more,
so I can let just this one slip away.

For surely there's always tomorrow
to make up for an oversight,
and we always get a second chance
to make everything just right.

There will always be another day
to say "I love you,"
And certainly there's another chance
to say our "Anything I can do?"

But just in case I might be wrong,
and today is all I get,
I'd like to say how much I love you
and I hope we never forget.

Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,
young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance
you get to hold your loved one tight.

So if you're waiting for tomorrow,
why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes,
you'll surely regret the day,

That you didn't take that extra time
for a smile, a hug, or a kiss
and you were too busy to grant someone,
what turned out to be their one last wish.

So hold your loved ones close today,
and whisper in their ear,
Tell them how much you love them
and that you'll always hold them dear

Take time to say "I'm sorry,"
"Please forgive me," "Thank you," or "It's okay."
And if tomorrow never comes,
you'll have no regrets about today.

Daddy's Day

Her hair was up in a ponytail, her favorite dress tied with a bow.

Today was Daddy's Day at school and she couldn't wait to go.

But her mommy tried to tell her, that she probably should stay home.

Why the kids might not understand if she went to school alone.

But she was not afraid; she knew just what to say.

What to tell her classmates of why he wasn't there today.

But still her mother worried, for her to face this day alone.

And that was why once again, she tried to keep her daughter home.

But the little girl went to school, eager to tell them all.

About a dad she never sees, a dad who never calls.

There were daddies along the wall in back for everyone to meet.

Children squirming impatiently, anxious in their seats.

One by one the teacher called a student from the class

To introduce their daddy as seconds slowly passed.

At last the teacher called her name, every child turned to stare.

Each of them was searching for a man who wasn't there.

Where's her daddy at?" she heard a boy call out.

She probably doesn't have one," another student dared to shout.

And from somewhere near the back, she heard a daddy say,

Looks like another deadbeat dad, too busy to waste his day."

The words did not offend her, as she smiled up at her Mom.

And looked back at her teacher, who told her to go on.

And with hands behind her back, slowly she began to speak.

And out from the mouth of a child came words incredibly unique

"My Daddy couldn't be here because he lives so far away.

But I know he wishes he could be, since this is such a special day.

And though you cannot meet him, I wanted you to know.

All about my daddy and how much he loves me so.

He loved to tell me stories, he taught me to ride my bike.

He surprised me with pink roses and taught me to fly a kite.

We used to share fudge sundaes and ice cream in a cone.

And though you cannot see him, I'm not standing here alone.

"Cause my daddy's always with me, even though we are apart

I know because he told me, he'll forever be in my heart"

With that, her little hand reached up, and lay across her chest.

Feeling her own heartbeat beneath her favorite dress

And from somewhere in the crowd of dads, her mother stood in tears.

Proudly watching her daughter, who was wise beyond her years.

For she stood up for the love of a man not in her life.

Doing what was best for her, doing what was right.

And when she dropped her hand back down, staring straight into the crowd

She finished with a voice so soft, but its message clear and  loud.

"I love my daddy very much, he's my shining star.

And if he could, he'd be here, but heaven's just too far.

But sometimes when I close my eyes, it's like he never went away.

"And then she closed her eyes and saw him there that day.

And to her mother's amazement, she witnessed with surprise.

A room full of daddies and children, all starting to close their eyes.

Who knows what they saw before them, who knows what they felt inside.

Perhaps for merely a second, they saw him at her side.

"I know you're with me Daddy," to the silence she called out.

And what happened next made believers of those once filled with doubt.

Not one in that room could explain it, for each of their eyes had been closed.

But there on the desk beside her was a fragrant long-stemmed pink rose.

And a child was blessed, if only for a moment, by the love of her shining bright star.

And given the gift of believing, that heaven is  never too far.

~ By Cheryl Costello-Forshey ©2000 ~

Used with permission

Daddy's Day was published in the books
Chicken Soup for the Parent's Soul
and Stories for a Teen's Heart 2

May not be copied or reproduced in any form without the written consent of the author