Yesterday I woke up to the news that my beloved campus had been ravished by deadly shootings. This morning I woke up to find that the perpetrator is a resident alien from South Korea. The South Korean government issued an apology of sorts. (I find is strange at times for governments to apologize for the behavior of one of their citizens.) While I have felt a type of disconnect from yesterday's events due to the time difference and such, this odd connection between the shooter and my host country has proven a strange twist in this story for me.
Cho was born in South Korea and his parents moved to Northern Virginia when he was 8 years old. In all likelihood, his aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents live in South Korea. And given the small size of this country, I live closer to his family than I have lived in relation to Blacksburg since I graduated. What must his family be thinking right now? I can't imagine how it must feel to be the parents of Cho--to see everyday on the news the pain and suffering he has caused, to hear the media talk about their son they way they are talking, to wonder if they as parents could have done something to prevent this. I can't imagine the shame this will bring on their family within the Korean culture.
For those who didn't get to watch the convocation, I encourage you to go to FoxNews.Com and watch the video clip of Nikki Giovanni's speech. The clip is less than 3 minutes long, and it is really the last minute of the clip that will paint the best picture possible for you to feel what it is like to be a Hokie.
And yes, that clip makes me cry.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
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1 comment:
Thanks for telling me where to find that clip. I saw the last few seconds of the speech and wanted to see the whole thing. I've thought of you throughout this, but especially when I heard the shooter was from South Korea. I'm not even a little bit surprised that in your grief you still have compassion for his family. You make Christ proud.
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