The Land of Hope and Dreams

The Land of Hope and Dreams

After September 11th, President Bush spoke of the war against evil, my daughter stood in line for two hours to buy a flag and I filled out my papers to become an American citizen. While I didn’t have to escape in a small boat through shark-infested waters to get here, it was still a big decision.

Canada is my country of birth; Israel is the land of my heart and my people. Why was I becoming an American citizen? And why now?

I’ve lived here for 19 years. I thought that I wouldn’t mind if I was an American. I would like to vote. But it just wasn’t worth the hassle -- the forms, the photos, the $250!
America shared a crucial experience with Israel -- being attacked for your values and for your very existence.

But something changed after 9/11. I had always appreciated the United States as a moral force in the world -- but not enough that I was actually going to do something about it. Then America shared a crucial experience with Israel -- being attacked for your values and principles, in fact for your very existence.