Tears of Sorrow, Tears of Joy

It is September 2002, a year removed from the tragedy of 9/11 that scarred the face of America and brought tears of sorrow to people around the world. "United we stand!" became a battle cry against those who would do such heinous acts. But in the days and weeks that followed tragedies continued, as some Americans struck out senselessly in anger against others they suspected to be villains.

On September 15, 2001, the first hate crime killing of the post- 9/11 era occurred in Mesa, Arizona, USA, a suburb of the city of Phoenix, with the killing of Balbir Singh Sodhi, a small gas station/convenience store owner, gunned down because, as an American Sikh, he was wearing the traditional Sikh headdress of a turban.

Other Sikhs, various people of Asian and Middle Eastern origin were accosted and beaten over the months that followed, despite President Bush speaking out against such outrages. Only a couple of weeks ago, another tragic death was recorded in San Francisco, with the slaying of Balbir Singh Sodhi's brother as he drove his taxicab.

The theme for a few Americans seemed to have become, "America for the Americans!" But who are the Americans?

I grew up in Philadelphia, and in my early teens traveled the country with my parents beginning in the summer of 1950 and each summer throughout that decade. Happily, I learned about my beautiful country first hand. When I first went abroad at age 29, I traveled as an American proud to be an American and open to learning about others who were proud to be British, French, Spanish and Greek. I looked like countless other Americans of my time. From the early '60s to the mid '80s I worked as an executive for major corporations in New York City. When the World Trade Center was built, I often enjoyed dinner at the beautiful "Windows on the World" restaurant atop one of the towers.

Yet now some would see me as a foreigner because I am a Sikh and I wear a turban. I have been a member of this respected world religion for more than 20 years, but my American ancestry dates back more than 300 years and includes three American presidents.

I remember Pearl Harbor. There was no TV then, only radio and movies. So my parents took me with them to the local movie house, not to see the movie but to see the newsreel footage of the ships being sunk. It was horrifying. Surely such an event would never happen again in my lifetime.

So it was with special disbelief that I watched with horror the events of 9/11, crying tears of sorrow for the lives lost, the families destroyed, and the mammoth unbelievable scar on the face of my beloved New York. How could this be happening again? I went to school with young survivors of Auschwitz and I felt the horror as they relived it for me. And now here was senseless slaughter happening again. I thought as I watched with horror, had humanity learned nothing?

Then, slowly, the sorrow changed as we witnessed with pride the courage of the men and women retrieving people from the wreckage, and heard of the courage of the "hero flight" whose passengers downed their bomber-airliner in the woodlands of western Pennsylvania.

The mood changed in our office as well, as phone call after phone call came in, bringing me and my staff tears of joy. Dozens of men and women across the country we had trained in our Reiki healing classes or at our Womanheart® Retreats had immediately responded to the tragedies by sending healing Reiki energy or doing a special meditation to help release the souls of those who died. They called to share their experiences with us and thank us for the tools they had received. The calls and emails continued for several weeks. They are among the heroes of 9/11.

Because of them, and millions like them who continue to pray and work to uplift others, I am even more proud to be an American. Our response as a people has to continue to be one of courage and compassion. As the bombs fell in Afghanistan, the food was delivered as well. That spirit, that love will always live. We will work to keep it alive.

A few weeks ago I stood with six others of my fellow Americans for two days, giving Reiki treatments free to nearly 200 nurses, lab technicians, therapists and other staffers at one of our major medical centers here in Phoenix. We came to serve those who spend long hours on the front lines of medicine. For most, it was their first Reiki treatment. We watched folks get off the table and feel instant relief from stress, aches and pains they had felt a long time, and even one lady who found a significant reduction in the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease.

At one point I felt tears were rolling down my cheeks, tears of joy, as I looked across the Reiki tables at those who joined me here in this beautiful act of selfless service. Their faces reflected the love coming from within them. They represented a broad spectrum of Americans. Our staff working with me and my husband (both of us Sikhs wearing turbans) included two nurses hailing from New Jersey and Philadelphia, a corporate manager born in North Carolina, a grandmother who is a newly-sworn American citizen and who hails originally from northern India, and a former manager for a city department now earning her degree as a naturopathic doctor. What a great testimony to America!

Yes, I'm all for the idea of America for the Americans - all the Americans, whether their family has been here for 300 years, 3 years, or 3 months. And we should include all those who will come in the future to join the country of compassion and courage, the country with an unbounded heart "from sea to shining sea." Courage and compassion must always stand against fear and terrorism, just as love stands against hatred.

We will rebuild what has been demolished, because our spirit is stronger than ever. We are Americans. We are the heart that never dies.

Bless you in all ways always!            (Click here for Balbir Singh Sodhi slide shows.)

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