 |
| America: Through Irish Eyes |
December 11, 2001 |
| |
Dear Friends,
The Irish Tenors are touring America. Last Tuesday evening one of the three, Ronan Tynon, came down from Pennsylvania to a restaurant that operates in the old Presidential Suite at Union Station in Washington. He came to talk -- and sing -- to members of the Business Software Alliance.
I don`t do many social things in Washington, but my good husband was in town and we went. While the company was good, we were really there to listen to a remarkable
man.
Tynon is a big man, but it was hard to imagine how any single human voice could fill that large room with its high ceilings and stone walls. He did. He talked about the lure of America and what it meant to the Irish people coming through the gates of Ellis Island in New York. Then he sang a song about an Irish girl, Annie Moore, who, at the age of 15, was the first to cross the threshold of the "Isle of Hope, Isle of Tears."
There are some performances that bypass your mind and go directly to your soul. This was that kind of night.
Tynon is an incredible man. He grew up with a spinal deformity and, after a motorcycle accident, became a double amputee in 1981. He is a medical doctor and exceptional athlete who sang in pubs and didn`t have his first voice lesson until 1993. He has a soft, disarming sense of humor that draws you into his embrace.
He talked about his family and his parent`s belief in him. They never let him use his disability as an excuse for not doing something. His Dad used to tell him, "You`re great".
And he talked about America with an affection you don`t often find in people who are not of this country. We are a land of innovation and technological progress, a place where people can dream big dreams and make them come true. We are a giving people, a resilient and tough people. A country that protects others and shoulders burdens that no other nation can shoulder.
And then, before he slipped out the door of the restaurant into the darkness, he sang "God Bless America". He reminded us that the words of the song are a solemn prayer and he sang it as if he were singing to God himself.
Three months ago, on the night of September 11th, the members of the House gathered in the dwindling light on the steps of the east front of the Capitol. Our leadership said some things; I don`t even remember what, now. But I do remember the voices that started in the back behind me and rolled to the front across the press corps singing "God Bless America". That uplifting
prayer continues to roll on beautifully.
Wish You Were Here,
 |
|
|
|