[Magdalen] Naturalization Ceremony

[Grace Cangialosi]

They have a naturalization ceremony up at Monticello every year on the Fourth of July and I keep thinking it would ba a good things to take some of the grandkids to. Maybe this year...

> On Jun 6, 2015, at 7:37 PM, Esther Williamson <momohl1 at cox.net> wrote:
> 
> Yes it is. I really enjoyed it.
> Esther
> 
>> On 6/6/2015 7:23 PM, Grace Cangialosi wrote:
>> This is lovely, Jim--thanks!
>> 
>>> On Jun 6, 2015, at 3:42 PM, James Oppenheimer-Crawford <oppenheimerjw at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> 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
>