Author: R. R. (Page 2 of 3)

I love to read and write.

Benghazi: What Every American Should Know About What Happened

July 18, 2021 / R. R. / 0 Comments

“13 Hours in Benghazi: The Inside Account of What Really Happened”

Mitchell Zuckoff with the Annex Security Team (Twelve, NY)

Disclosure: You can borrow books from your local library at no charge. You can buy books from Amazon or elsewhere. Sometimes I buy books to keep; many times I borrow books from the library. In my blog, I provide a link to books on Amazon. If you buy after clicking through to Amazon via one of these links, I receive a commission.

This is a compelling, raw, and impactful read. If you’re like me, you’ve heard lots about the Benghazi disaster via the media but this brings it into a much sharper focus. The book notes that it is not designed to point blame but it’s tough to read this and not want answers and accountability.

What I learned

Benghazi is the second major city in Libya. The late dictator, Gaddafi, pretty much crushed Benghazi and favored Tripoli. The Libyan uprising against Gaddafi began in Benghazi.

The US had an embassy in Tripoli and a Special Mission in Benghazi, located inside a compound. Close to the compound, was the CIA Annex. The US Ambassador, Chris Stevens, seemed like a genuine guy and wanted to support the people of Benghazi.

The US created a Global Response Staff (GRS) after 9/11 to protect US operations and personnel in dangerous locations. These included CIA security people and former military “special operators” who were contractors. The GRS in Benghazi were located in the CIA Annex. The CIA base chief is known only as “Bob.” That’s a good thing, because readers are left with a very poor impression of Bob.

The Benghazi operation were also protected by local “friendly” Libyan forces called the 17 February militia and hired local Libyan (unarmed) security. Both of these local forces seemed to be unreliable and unpredictable.

The main players

The contract operators are Rone, Jack, Tig, D.B., Tanto, and Oz. These guys are tough. Forget everything you’ve heard about tough before — these guys are at a new level.

Chris Stevens, the US Ambassadors, comes across as a really impressive individual. At one point, the book mentions that “Outside the view of reporters, he met with fellow diplomats and Libyans of high and low station, from government ministers to local officials, powerful businessmen to small shopkeepers … Often Stevens’ contacts grew so comfortable in his presence that they dispensed with titles altogether, and used his first name” (chapter 3).

Interestingly, Stevens had previously asked for increased security in Libya but this had been denied.

The Attack

In September, Stevens visited the Special Mission in Benghazi to participate at a ribbon cutting event at a local school. His visit had been reported in the media and he brought two security officers with him.

On the morning of September 11, a Libyan national was observed scouting out and photographing the compound from a neighboring building.

Around 9pm, the Ambassador went to his room for the evening. Shortly after that, armed attackers stormed the compound, the gates were opened, the Libyan guards disappeared, and the attackers began setting fire to the building in which the Ambassador was staying. In panic, the Americans in the compound contacted Tripoli and Washington and sought safety in the “safe haven” within the compound.

In a stunning turn of events, the operators in the annex, who had geared up and were ready to rush to the compound, were told to stand down by the CIA chief, Bob. He insisted that he wanted the local Libyan forces to resolve the problem. He didn’t want the operators involved. Frustrated, the operators stood by as they heard the desperate radio calls from the trapped Americans who were under attack and unable to escape.

In the compound safe haven, the Ambassador and two of his security team were battling smoke inhalation and desperately seeking a way out of the building. In the smoke and confusion, the ambassador and one of the team, Sean Smith, became separated. Neither would survive the attack.

Back at the annex, some 20 minutes after receiving the first calls, the operators defied the CIA boss and set out for the compound. In the ensuring 13 hours, the team, with reinforcements from Tripoli, rescued the surviving Americans and returned to the Annex. Despite desperate attempts, no one was able to locate the ambassador from the burning building but they did recover the body of Sean Smith.

Back at the Annex, the exhausted team braced for another attack. The attack came in the former of mortar fire, which killed one of the operators (Rone) and one of the Tripoli team (Glen Doherty), and seriously wounded another (Oz). Finally, support arrived and evacuated the surviving Americans to the airport.

Libyan nationals recovered the body of the ambassador and returned it to the Americans.

What was shocking?

The most shocking thing was the decision of the CIA boss not to send in the operators to rescue the Americans in the compound. The operators believed this cost lives. Referring to one of the operators, the author notes:

“He believed that Sean Smith wouldn’t be dead and Chris Stevens wouldn’t be missing , if only they’d rushed to the Compound when they first jocked up.” (chapter 10).

It was also stunning that back in the US, the Obama Administration was selling the story that the attack was unplanned and was the result of a demonstration against an anti-Muslim video. In reality, this appeared to be a well-planned and orchestrated account, a position the Administration was later forced to admit.

Concluding thoughts

It’s a long book but it’s absolutely worth reading. It’s compelling because it really happened and it was the first time the US had lost an ambassador since the 1970s.

The commitment of the operators and the other security team members was amazing. It’s a miracle that the US didn’t lose more people in the incident.

In Memory of the four Americans and seven Libyans who paid the ultimate price:

J. Christopher Stevens

Sean Smith

Tyrone (Rone) Woods

Glen (Bub) Doherty

The Book

The Movie

Laugh, Cry, Love: Another Nicholas Sparks hit

March 15, 2021 / R. R. / 0 Comments

The Rescue

Nicholas Sparks (Grand Central Publishing)

If you’re a parent, if you love Nicholas Sparks’ books, if you’re a romantic … you will definitely enjoy this one.

Denise is the pretty single mother of a little boy who is struggling with a speech delay. She’s lonely. She’s lost both her parents and she’s in a new town. Her life hasn’t been easy and it hasn’t been fair. Did I mention she’s lonely?

Taylor is the rugged volunteer firefighter who rescues Denise and her son after a car accident. He has plenty of friends but he’s single and and he’s carrying a heavy burden. His self-loathing causes him to sabotage every relationship. He just can’t allow himself to be happy.

Denise is different to anyone Taylor has met. He falls in love with her and he becomes a doting father figure to her son. But of course, he’s back on the same destructive path. And it costs him his relationship with Denise.

[Spoiler alert]. Denise and Taylor are both broken, wounded people. Taylor knows he’s truly in love with Denise and that he can’t destroy this relationship. There’s too much at stake. In desperation, he opens up to her and shares the heart-breaking burden he’s carried for so long. Denise understands suffering – she’s been dealing with it for many years. She’s there for Taylor; she’s the perfect one for him. This is a special match.

Life can be hard and this book doesn’t sugar-coat the impact of life’s hardships. But it’ll touch your heart and leave you feeling that there’s someone for everyone and that true love has a remarkable impact on the human heart.

The Choice: This is Nicholas Sparks at his best

February 8, 2021 / R. R. / 0 Comments

The Choice

Nicholas Sparks (Grand Central Publishing)

This is without doubt one of my favorite Nicholas Sparks books. The characters are exceptionally well developed and truly come alive. The romance is tender, believable and will draw you in. There’s humor and heartache, tears and tenderness. You won’t want to put the book down and it will be worth every minute of your time. I highly recommend it.

The books follows the story of Travis Parker (the local veterinarian) who falls in love with his new neighbor, Gabby Holland (who has moved to town to become a PA in the local medical clinic). Gabby already has a boyfriend whom she hopes to marry but she’s unhappy in her relationship and the reader knows that she is settling for second best. As the relationship with Travis blossoms, Gabby knows that she’s fallen in love and this time it’s real.

[Spoiler alert] Fast forward some years and Travis and Gabby are married with two daughters. Their lives are picture perfect until the accident. Now Gabby lies in a coma and Travis faces “the choice” – will he follow Gabby’s wishes (expressed years ago) and allow her to die or will he hold on and hope against hope that she recovers? The intensity of Travis’s love is too great. He cannot let Gabby go. In the epilogue, we learn that his decision was the right one: Gabby awakens; life is restored; patience and enduring love are rewarded. It will melt your heart. Read it.

This is one of those rare cases where the movie is just as good as the book and perhaps even better. Benjamin Walker and Teresa Palmer do an incredible job of bringing alive the leading characters. It’s hard not to fall in love with them.

The movie mostly follows the book. One departure from the book is in the details of the accident. In the book, both Gabby and Travis are both in the vehicle when they have the accident and Travis is driving (too fast in poor conditions). In the movie, Gabby is driving alone in the rain because Travis has failed to turn up in time for their date. Nonetheless, the movie captures the very same feelings — Travis believes that he’s responsible for what happened to Gabby and that if he’d made different decisions, better choices, the accident wouldn’t have happened.

Love at first sight? For me, not this time

January 25, 2021 / R. R. / 0 Comments

At First Sight

Nicholas Sparks (Grand Central Publishing)

I need to start this review by saying … I love Nicholas Sparks’ books and I’ve read most (?) of them. The problem with this is that when I read a Sparks’ book, I start with the presumption that it’s going to be phenomenal. Most of the time, I’m right, but this time I was a little disappointed.

And I also didn’t realize until too late that this was a “book 2,” by which I mean to say, I haven’t read book 1. I think this impacted my ability to appreciate the book.

That said, it was good book but probably my least favorite Sparks. I didn’t feel like it had the same character development (quite possibly because I haven’t read book 1). It was also a little too predictable. I pretty much guessed exactly what was going to happen and then I was disappointed that I was right!

The good

There were three things I really like about this book.

It’s relatable. If you’re married/have been married and if you have had kids, you’re bound to relate to at least some parts of it.

It has a message without being “preachy”. It’s going to touch you. It’s going to make you think.

The epilogue of the book is great. I predicted how things would play out so the conclusion wasn’t impactful for me. But the epilogue was and I enjoyed it.

The bad

Usually, I find that I love the characters that Nicolas Sparks creates. Here, I didn’t really warm to the two main characters all that much. I found Lexie just a little too self-centred and Jeremy’s writer’s block got old.

(spoiler alert) Part of the story involves some mysterious emails that Jeremy received. I found this part unrealistic and contrived. The emails turn out to be from his best friend but I never felt I really felt this was satisfactorily resolved and explained.

I’m going to read book 1

If you decide to read this book, be smarter than me and read book 1 first.

I plan to read book 1 to see what I missed!

Loved Downton Abbey? You will love this book!

January 9, 2021 / R. R. / 0 Comments

The Remains of the Day

Kazuo Ishiguro (Vintage International)

This is an awesome, well-written and insightful book and I loved it! It’s not for everyone. It’s slower moving and subtle. It’s a love story — or rather a story of missed opportunities. If you loved Downton Abbey, this book is for you. If you’re looking for fast-paced action, this book is not for you.

The story is told in the first person, narrated by Mr. Stevens, the long-serving butler of Darlington Hall. Stevens journeys through the southern part of Britain to meet up with Miss Kenton (now Mrs Benn), his former colleague whom he understands to be in the process of divorcing. He hopes to entice Miss Kenton to return to her employment at Darlington Hall … and yet the observant reader can see that it is not merely her professional association that Stevens seeks.

As he travels, Stevens shares his reflections on a life of unquestioning loyal service to Lord Darlington during the pre-World War II era. Stevens is quintessentially British: he never flinches in his loyalty and his commitment to appearance and professionalism, even when it comes at great personal cost. Even when it is progressively revealed that Lord Darlington was a Nazi-sympathizer, still Stevens remains loyal to his master, in whom he always sees, and of whom he always believes, the best.

Running throughout the text is the story of the developing relationship between Stevens and the housekeeper, Miss Kenton. They clash and yet they connect on a deeper level. There’s something special there. Almost.

[Spoiler alert] When Stevens finally connects with Miss Kenton, they reminisce together on old times. Poignantly, Stevens asks her if she is happy. Yes, she is happy and yet she is not because she sees what might have been:

“But that doesn’t mean to say, of course, there aren’t occasions now and then – extremely desolate occasions – when you think to yourself: “What a terrible mistake I’ve made with my life.” And you get to thinking about a different life, a better life you might have had. For instance, I get to thinking about a life I may have had with you, Mr. Stevens.”

The words touch Mr. Stevens and he states: “as you might appreciate, their implications were such as to provoke a certain degree of sorrow within me. Indeed – why should I not admit it? – at that moment, my heart was breaking.”

And yet, ever the stiff-upper-lip Brit, Stevens concludes he must go on “and try to make the best of what remains of my day.”

It’s compelling, it’s powerful, and it will make you think about what matters in life and how to make it count.

Romance, betrayal, revenge: But love ultimately conquers

January 2, 2021 / R. R. / 0 Comments

“Wuthering Heights”

Emily Bronte (Bantam Classics)

4.0 out of 5.0 stars4.0

This isn’t an easy read but every well-read person should have a copy of this classic on their bookshelf. The story is largely told by the housekeeper, Nelly Dean, who has observed the long and sad tale of love, conflict, betrayal, and revenge, lived out in the tangled lives of the Earnshaw family of Wuthering Heights and the Linton family of Thrushcross Grange.

Three reasons to read this book

Read this book for the multidimensional characters.

Read this book to understand the self-destructive nature of unrestrained hatred and revenge.

Read this book to ponder the enduring power of love and the resilience of life itself.

The story

The saga begins with Mr. Earnshaw Sr. bringing home an orphaned child, Heathcliff, whom he raises with his two children, Hindley and Catherine. Hindley despises Heathcliff but Catherine adores him and an unmistakable and enduring bond of love grows between Heathcliff and Catherine.

When the senior Earnshaw dies, Hindley becomes the master of Wuthering Heights and sets about treating Heathcliff with brutal contempt, depriving him of both education and social opportunity. The Linton siblings, Edgar and Isabella, have a similar distain for their socially-inferior neighbor; meanwhile, the love between Catherine and Heathcliff grows ever stronger.

A moment of crisis comes when the young Edgar Linton, the future master of Thrushcross Grange, proposes to Catherine. She turns to Nelly for advice on whether she has done the right thing by accepting him to which Nelly, who perceives Catherine’s heart, informs her that:

“You love Mr. Edgar because he is handsome, and young, and cheerful, and rich, and loves you. The last, however, goes for nothing: you would love him without that, probably, and with it you wouldn’t, unless he possessed the four former attractions” (p. 71).

In a moment of truth, Catherine declares to Nelly that she truly loves Heathcliff and that he is her soulmate but that she cannot marry him because of his degraded status, brought about by Hindley. Unbeknownst to her, Heathcliff is listening in on the conversation, and he subsequently leaves Wuthering Heights without further ado and without informing Catherine. Catherine, devasted at Heathcliff’s departure and her role in it, marries Edgar Linton and moves to Thrushcross Grange.

Some years hence, Heathcliff returns, now a gentleman of apparent standing. In short time he sets about exacting his revenge on both Hindley and Edgar. Hindley, now a drunken wreck after the death of his wife and an abusive father to his son Hareton, slowly gambles away his control of the Wuthering Heights estate. Despite his best efforts, Edgar fails to protect his sister Isabella from falling in love and marrying Heathcliff, who courts her until marriage — and then despises and crushes her in a bitter act of vengeance on her brother.

The march of time brings forth more of Heathcliff’s revenge. Catherine dies in childbirth, leaving Edgar to raise his new daughter, Cathy, alone. Hindley also comes to a lonely demise, leaving his son Hareton in the care of Heathcliff, who viciously exacts revenge by treating him as Hindley had treated Heathcliff — depriving him of education and training in the social graces.

Isabella, who fled from Heathcliff while pregnant with his son whom she named Linton, also dies, allowing Heathcliff to claim custody of the child he disdains. Ultimately, a forced marriage between Cathy and Linton, effected before the ailing Edgar Linton can change his will, places Heathcliff in the position of gaining control of the Thrushcross Grange estate.

With Edgar’s death, quickly followed by that of Linton, Heathcliff’s revenge is complete. He controls both Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange and he has reduced both Cathy and Hareton to a life of misery.

And yet it is at this moment that Heathcliff’s victory is exposed as being hollow and empty. A love begins to grow between Cathy and Hareton and Heathcliff cannot stop it. He sees in each of them the very eyes of his beloved Catherine (mother to one and aunt to the other), whom he has loved since childhood and for whom he has pined since the day she died.

Final moments

In his declining days, Heathcliff shares with Nelly that, although he could enact final revenge on his enemies, he no longer desires it. “I have lost the faculty of enjoying their destruction,” he tells her, “and I am too idle to destroy for nothing.”

The book concludes with Heathcliff’s death and the plans of the young couple to marry – on New Year’s Day – and to move to Thrushcross Grange. The circle is complete. Heathcliff is forgotten; the Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange estates are in the hands of the Earnshaws and Lintons. Love and life have triumphed over revenge, darkness and death.

The 5 best things I learned from “Great Leaders Have No Rules” (Kevin Kruse)

January 1, 2021 / R. R. / 0 Comments

“Great Leaders Have No Rules: Contrarian Leadership Principles to Transform Your Team and Business”

Kevin Kruse (Rodale)

4.5 out of 5.0 stars4.5

I don’t necessarily agree with the “contrarian” or “no rules” description but the lessons here are extremely valuable. Anyone can learn from them. In fact, I particularly liked the way in which the author provides a section called “The Takeaway” at the end of every chapter. These takeaways are specifically tailored to managers, sales professionals, sports coaches, military, parents, and individuals. Basically, there’s something here for everyone. It’s well worth a read.

Sometimes it feels like the author is name-dropping and at first that annoyed me. However, I started to see that by drawing on a wide range of leaders, the author is able to present a more meaningful summation of good leadership thinking.

There’s so much here that everyone will take something different from the book. For me, the five best lessons the author presents were:

Be more intentional about open door and closed door office times. This will allow you to increase productivity while still be accessible. “If your door is always open, even figuratively, you never know what your day is going to look like. In contrast, keeping the door open only during limited and preset times allows you to keep control and prevents others from interrupting your flow” (p. 13).

Schedule everything. Everything. “Live from your calendar, time-block family dinners or homework or reading at bedtime, and ensure that your time matches your values” (p.117)

Don’t be afraid to treat people differently. Reward the high achievers; don’t spend too much time on the troublemakers; help people find and use their unique talents. That’s fair. “In a misguided attempt to be objective and fair, too many managers treat all their team members the same. That’s an extremely unfair way to treat your best performers” (p. 135).

Love people, be transparent, and forget about being liked. Measure yourself against how well you adhere to your values, not the opinions of others. “Some of what I value: transparency, treating people fairly, making decisions objectively, caring for my team members. Those are the standards that I’ll measure myself against, not whether or not the people at work like me” (p.75)

You’re leading. All the time. Even when you don’t realize it. Will you be a positive or a negative influence? “Leadership, with its endless definitions, is most often boiled down to one word: influence” (p. 183).

An Unexpected Win: Work-Life Balance

Although there’s something here for everyone, there’s a particularly big benefit for leaders who are also parents. I didn’t anticipate the valuable insights on work-life balance and how to be a more effective parent. Definitely an unexpected win!

This really happened: Three amazing real life stories

December 29, 2020 / R. R. / 0 Comments

NUMBER 1

Night (Elie Wiesel)

An incredible true survival story from the Holocaust told as a first person account. Deported from his rural village as a 15 year old boy, Wiesel survives the horrors of Auschwitz-Birkenau, Buna and Buchenwald. His mother, father and little sister did not.

NUMBER 2

The Spy and the Traitor (Ben Macintyre)

The story of one of the most important spies of the Cold War era, KGB Colonel Oleg Gordievsky who spied for MI6. The book highlights the incredible impact his information had on preventing a nuclear incident and bringing an end to the Cold War.

NUMBER 3

Alive (Piers Paul Read)

The desperate story of the 16 survivors who spent ten weeks in frigid conditions after their plane crashes in the Andes. With no available food sources in the icy terrain, their desperation drives them to eat the flesh of their dead companions.

One of the most compelling personal Holocaust survival stories ever written

December 29, 2020 / R. R. / 0 Comments

Night

Elie Wiesel (Bantam Books)

Today, January 27, is International Holocaust Remembrance Day. On this day in 1945, the Russian army liberated the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.

This week, I read again Eli Wiesel’s compelling personal account of surviving the Holocaust. It’s a truly moving story and one that will break your heart. Wiesel catalogs his experiences as a Jew in Sighet, a small rural community in Transylvania, watching the horrors of anti-Semitism unfold. His story follows his life as a 15 year old, assigned first to the ghettos, then transported to Auschwitz, then to Buna, and finally to Buchenwald where he was liberated by the American forces. Wiesel survived: his mother, father and little sister did not.

As I read the book this time, what stood out to me the most was the incomprehensible nature of the depravity that emerged. Five examples stand out:

The first is the rejection of Moshe the Beadle. In the initial wave, all foreign Jews were expelled from Sighet. Moshe the Beadle was one of them. Miraculously, he escaped and ultimately returned to the village to warn the Jews about what was really going on. The deportees hadn’t been relocated: they’d been taken to a forest and executed. We learn that “Without passion, without haste, they slaughtered their prisoner. Each one had to go up to the hole and present his neck. Babies were thrown into the air and the machine gunners used them as targets” (p.4).

But no one believes Moshe the Beadle. He is dismissed as a crazy old man who has lost his mind. The horrors he recounts are simply incomprehensible.

The second is the silence of the majority. Yet it was not only the silence it was the cold, calculating thinking that seemed to underlie the indifference. Wiesel describes being marched out in the deportation: “The town seemed deserted. Yet our friends of yesterday were probably waiting behind their shutters for the moment when they could pillage our houses” (p.19).

The third is the moment when Wiesel and his father are being marched to the barracks and see flames coming from a ditch. “They were burning something. A lorry drew up at the pit and delivered its load — little children. Babies!” (p.30).

The fourth is the execution of a young boy by hanging. This time the inhumanity was such that Wiesel tells us that even “the Lagerkap refused to act as executioner. Three SS replaced him” (p. 61). The boy was too light to die quickly. “For more than half an hour he stayed there, struggling between life and death, dying in slow agony under our eyes. And we had to look him full in the face. He was still alive when I passed in front of him. His tongue was still red, his eyes were not yet glazed” (p.62).

The last is the sad sight of the German workmen who who seemed to enjoy watching the trainload of emaciated Jews fighting for pieces of bread: “a workman took a piece of bread out of his bag and threw it into a wagon. There was a stampede. Dozens of starving me fought each other to the death for a few crumbs. The German workmen took a lively interest in this spectacle” (p.95).

In a time when Holocaust denial seems to be on the rise, we must never forget. Read this book. Tell a friend. Teach your children.

Lost in the Andes: A worst nightmare survival story

December 29, 2020 / R. R. / 0 Comments

Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors

Piers Paul Read (Open Road)

This is ultimately a story about the indomitable human spirit and the will to survive. It’s a story of courage and heroism, faith and hope, resilience and rugged determination. It’s a compelling read and it will give you chills. If it were not a true story, the reader could be forgiven for saying the story was far-fetched. But it’s real. It happened and 16 survivors battled through tragic circumstances for ten weeks to tell the tale.

The story involves 45 individuals — a rugby team, their families, friends and the air crew — who leave Montivideo, Uruguay, to fly to Santiago, Chile, for a rugby game that would never be played. The plane crash lands in a remote part of the Andes and the battle for survival begins. The survivors must battle bitter cold, starvation, altitude, terrible injuries, the hostile terrain and utter loneliness. When they learn that the search for them has been abandoned, they commit to finding a way back, despite the incredible odds stacked against them.

But this is also a story about families who never gave up hope. Despite the official pronouncements that their loved ones were almost certainly dead and that it was a waste of resources to continue searching, they fought on in a vain hope. Searching. Waiting. Daring to hope when everything looked hopeless.

The most compelling part of the story comes when the survivors confront the bitter reality that, abandoned in the barren and snow covered terrain, they will starve. Unless they resort to the only food source available to them — the frozen bodies of their fallen companions. The revulsion of this necessity will impact the reader but not nearly as strongly as it impacted the survivors.

In a compelling moment, one of them leads the way:

“Most of the bodies were covered by snow, but the buttocks of one protruded a few yards from the plane. With no exchange of words Canessa knelt, bared the skin, and cut into the flesh with a piece of broken glass. …

He prayed to God to help him do what he knew to be right and then took a piece of meat in his hand. He hesitated. Even with his mind so firmly made up, the horror of the act paralyzed him. His hand would neither rise to his mouth nor fall to his side while the revulsion which possessed him struggled with his stubborn will. The will prevailed. The hand rose and pushed the meat into his mouth. He swallowed it.”

Concluding thoughts

The tale of the survivors’ ordeal is gripping. But with the agony of the tale comes the ecstasy of the rescue. The reader’s emotions are torn as parents meet surviving children, while other parents have their hopes dashed yet again.

Equally compelling is the change in the survivors and their new understanding of the things that matter in life. Perhaps one of the most poignant comments comes late in the book where the author reports:

“They all agreed, however, that their ordeal on the mountain had changed their attitude towards life. Suffering and privation had taught them how frivolous their lives had been. Money had become meaningless. No one up there would have sold one cigarette for the five thousand dollars they had amassed in the suitcase. Each day that passed had peeled off layer upon layer of superficiality until they were left with only what they truly cared for: their families, their novias, their faith in God and their homeland.”

Would that all of us could attain such an understanding of life, without having to face such an ordeal.

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