[Magdalen] Naturalization Ceremony

[James Oppenheimer-Crawford]

Had an interesting afternoon yesterday.

Went to the Wallace center, a part of the FDR Library and Home in Hyde Park
as a driver.  They were having a naturalization ceremony, and the DAR was
supplying refreshments.
I've never seen this before, and I wanted to see it.  It turns out it's
like so many other things.  Hurry up and wait.
Homeland Security now must speak individually with each candidate. Among
other things, they ask them if they have changed their mind since applying
for citizenship.
H S had a group in the morning in Rockland County, and were apparently
delayed for two hours, so everybody had to wait for them.
This gave our county executive, Marcus Molinaro, a chance to practice his
stand-up routine "I have a lot of jokes <pause> some of them are funny."
After a particularly lame joke, he pointed to one lady, "Excuse me ma'am. I
see you are laughing.  Did you REALLY think that was funny? Yes? And where
are you from, ma'am?  Jamaica? Oh I have to get down there to talk."
He gamely went on poking fun at himself for about fifteen minutes ("If
someone somewhere is opening an envelope, I will be there!")
He was always interested in politics as a young man, and he got tired of
hearing the trustees in his village saying, no matter what the subject,
"Oh, we can't do that." He learned a bit about representative gummint, and
he suddenly realized that if he wanted change, he might be the one to start
it.
He ran for village trustee at eighteen years old -- and won.
A year later, he found out the mayor was retiring, and he was starting to
enjoy politics. "So I ran home as fast as I could and asked my mother if I
was permitted to run for mayor. She said yes, so I did, and I won. I was
mayor for twelve years."
Marc is now in his forties (I believe). You may hear more of this man in
the coming years, he's that good.

Eventually we worked around to the ceremony.  Looking out the window at the
statue of Eleanor and Franklin sitting on a bench just like plain folks, I
looked around at these people (73 individuals were naturalized that day) I
felt we obviously have something going on here if these folks are coming
here from different lands (There was a map in the room with a stick pin for
every country: Canada, S. America, Vietnam, Russia, Africa, the usual
European suspects)

We started out by singing the national anthem in a sort of organum.

And then the oath itself, including the same words I swore as a non-com,
but with a marvelous twist:
The administrator went "Repeat after me.
I -- state your name --"
And they then went around the room. Each of the seventy-three people, one
by one, stated their name.  This part touched me so very deeply, but I was
totally unprepared for the little incident that happened next.
In the midst of this, each person is reciting his name, going around the
room in a prearranged order, and then I heard, but it did not fully
register until a moment later (Huh? Did that really happen?), one person
stated his name:

"Ronald Reagan <surname>"

Some one person spontaneously clapped. I am glad they did because I would
have convinced myself I imagined it. But it was over, and the ceremony just
carried on.

Two people in front of me were obviously new citizens, and I got the
privilege of being the very first person to congratulate them on their
citizenship.

And then, all in the room now being citizens, we pledged allegiance to the
flag<snif>.

Then we sang America the Beautiful in sort of parallel thirds.  Sweet.

Everybody got their picture taken by friends, standing next to the flag
pointing to THEIR stick-pin.  Goodness.  From all over the world....

We had a huge pile of cookies and drinks and they were all gone. Yay.

I always enjoy visiting the center.  I never knew FDR. He died before I was
born. But I've always felt a connection.  We talked about Mrs. Roosevelt in
school all the time when I was a kid.

When I was an undergrad at Pitt, I had some business in the Cathedral of
Learning, and was getting into an elevator. I was chatting with the
elevator operator, who was an African-American gentleman. For some reason,
the name of Franklin Roosevelt came up, and at that moment, the man took
off his hat.

He looked me, looked at his hat, looked at me.

And then, he said, "He made us feel like he cared about us." I cannot
imagine a more noble monument than that doffed cap.

Our President could not stand, yet he helped America get back on its feet.

And every time I visit, I think of all that....




James W. Oppenheimer-Crawford
*“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved,
except in memory. LLAP**”  -- *Leonard Nimoy