The Word Cloud

Dear friends,

I’m sure that 9/11 is one of those days that none of us will ever forget. It is the kind of day that you remember where you were when the news first broke.

Having visited Ground Zero and witnessed the progress that has been made towards rebuilding the area and the hope for the future that the locals have, we were impressed by the New Yorkers’ true grit resilience.

But have we really learned a valuable lesson from 9/11 or is there still a long way to go?

Real estate on Manhattan remains some of the most expensive on the planet. A one bedroom apartment here rents for a whopping $3000 per month. Therefore, some the communities on the island have learnt to adapt their spaces to accommodate multiple uses and gain the most value for their money. The most impressive of these compromises came when we visited Harlem. A sign adored the side of a beautiful Presbyterian Church. Apparently the Presbyterian congregation had use of the church six days a week and on the seventh day the building transforms into the local synagogue. What a marvellous arrangement. If only the rest of the world could learn to become this accommodating and tolerant, what progress we could make. We left the area with an overwhelming feeling of bonhomie and optimism for the future of our species.

This was short-lived however. As we travelled back along the subway line towards Brooklyn and our train pulled in to one of the stations along route, a blind man tried to board. Behind him trailed a sack barrow upon which was stacked all his worldly possessions bungee-roped to the trolley. Despite it being close to 80 degrees warm, the man, a middle-aged black man, wore several layers of clothing including a thick woolly coat which was tied at the waist with the obligatory piece of string. He boarded the carriage but was having difficulty lifting his trolley on board. The doors half closed trapping his bags and people stood and watched as he struggled; no-one helped him. Mike and I went to the man’s assistance and another man helped to release the trolley from the doors. The blind man was so very surprised to be helped at all and so very grateful. He was sober, clean and well spoken. We couldn’t help but wonder what this man’s story was. I was so tempted to remove pen and pencil from backpack, travel back along the line with him and ask him to reveal all. What an interesting story I bet it would have made. To be homeless in Manhattan is one thing, to be blind another, but to be homeless and blind?

What perplexed us most of all was the attitude of the other passengers; they just sat there. What were they thinking as they did so? Did it not occur to them that the train could not proceed until the doors closed properly. At the very least they were going nowhere until someone helped this man onboard and yet they still all sat there. Why?

Has the U.S. become any more compassionate since 9/11? Are they now willing to listen to and tolerate others more? Do they really want to help the genuinely oppressed? Our view is that the blind man thinks the jury is still out on that one...and so do we.