To Britain With Love:  Thank You

For the second time in a week, I again watched CNN with my mouth hanging wide open.  Amidst the tragic history made this past week, one event took place whose unimaginable significance was unfortunately lost to most Americans.  In England, with hundreds or perhaps thousands of mourners pressing the gate, Buckingham Palace played OUR national anthem instead of the time-honored Changing of the Guard.

God Bless America would have honored us greatly.  America The Beautiful would have been more than enough.  But England somehow chose the one song written while our two countries were at war.  Most of us have forgotten, but the very night Francis Scott Key penned The Star Spangled Banner, British blood was being poured out on American soil.  “The bombs bursting in air” we so proudly sing of were in fact being fired at Redcoats.  Nonetheless, this is the song England upended her own tradition with to dedicate to us while we mourned.  In so doing, I believe England unknowingly pierced well beyond the veil of international politics, and that this single act has healed a supernatural wound that has festered for over two centuries.

To explain, consider the Jewish “bar mitzvah.”  When a boy comes age of, his family conducts a holy service in which he receives his father’s blessing.  He is thus received into manhood, spiritually empowered to go out into the world bearing the family name, and expected to have great success. Similarly, when ordaining a minister or sending out a missionary, Christians “lay hands” upon the head of a new leader, imparting the spiritual authority of the church, and to signify their blessing upon the emerging ministry.  That’s not what happened when America “left home” however.  We broke away in rebellion to England’s authority.  We actually took up arms against the “parents” who birthed us.

Yes, yes, our cause was certainly just.  History has never begrudged us that.  It might even be rightly argued that God was on our side.  We certainly became successful enough (although less than a hundred years passed before we fell into terrible war with ourselves, which to be honest still isn’t over).  Worse, we became obnoxiously drunk with our quick success.  As England lost her territories over the decades, America conquered the world.  Of course trade routes quickly reopened between us, and we’ve had a great economic relationship for most of the time since.  Our governments have successfully worked together as well – you’d even call us allies.

But facing facts – the actual people of our countries have barely maintained a civil savagery in our attitudes toward one another.  To the English, Americans are snotty brats, spoiled beyond redemption by our money, power and conveniences.  Meanwhile, we disdain the English concept of royalty and tradition, and in fact, think you’re rude and stuffy.  The Fourth of July, garishly celebrated as our “Independence Day,” is today commonly referred to in English slang as “good riddance day.”  You’ve always viewed us as the prodigal son who ran off with the inheritance. We’ve considered you the jealous brother who got irate because the father blessed us anyway.  Sure, things couldn’t be better on the economic and political fronts, but deep down… we’ve never really particularly cared for one another.

Am I being unfair here?  Of course we’re the best of friends.  After all, wasn’t it America that came to England’s aid in not one, but two world wars?  No America, we did not.  And how dare we be so pretentious to even think that? We protected our interests, and that is all.  Churchill and Roosevelt worked together for years to enlist America’s aid against Hitler, to no avail.  It took Pearl Harbor to get us involved.  Yes, we bled and died on England’s soil this time, but not for the English, for us.  Certainly not because she needed us in her darkest hour.

And now we face probably our darkest hour. But we didn’t even call, and England has already answered.

They could have sent us flowers.  They could have offered an eloquent speech of condolence, or perhaps sent someone over to stand in front of the cameras with one of our leaders – the usual international stuff.  Instead, the great and proud England elegantly humbled herself, abandoning a tradition more sacred than baseball, apple pie and even Mom herself will ever be to us.  They took that tradition and placed it on an altar of forgiveness, which in our arrogance, we never thought even once to ask for.  Then they willingly burned it - in our honor - for all the world to see.  They played our song.

For all intents and purposes, England bar-mitzvahed us.  She has received us as all grown up now, and has moved to make us a family again.  Heaven will record this as the day that the rift caused by our violent separation was finally closed.  Only it was not slick American “ingenuity,” but England, with her superior character, who won this victory before God and man.

Thank you, England.  My only regret is that we were too slow – too in shock, and frankly, too unaware of what this truly meant - to grasp the significance of your sacrifice or even to respond in a proper manner.  I wish the news and all the world had seen our President standing at attention, saluting you across the sea, but it just didn’t happen like that.  We’re stupid that way England, and for that, we are so very sorry.  But I salute you. I pray that all America will also.  You’ve been so patient with us, waiting for us to grow up into mature, decent adults – the kind you’d actually want to be friends with.  However, so much time has passed that we now stand shoulder to shoulder, in a way that parents and children simply cannot.  We are equals, and right now we will need to cling to each other desperately IF we are to survive the challenges this war is going to bring.

Thank you, England.  Weeks ago, we were merely mutually cooperating world powers.  Now, your act of sacrificial love has made us brothers.  May we forever mourn together when the other is mourning.  May we forever rejoice as the other rejoices.  And may we now and forever always leap to the other’s aid in future times of crisis, even though it may cost us dearly. You have already led us in this, not by power or might, but by example.

Thank you, England.  We appreciate you, and we love you.  And just in case you’ve never heard the words spoken from an upstart American –
“Long Live The Queen.”

And may God bless Great Britain.

Guy Malone, Roswell New Mexico , U.S.A.
seekye1@earthlink.net
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Copyright 2001 Guy Malone  www.guymalone.com
Guy Malone is a counter-cult researcher residing in Roswell, New Mexico (alienresistance.org) Submission of this article does not imply surrender of copyright, nor an exclusive right for recipient to print, distribute or otherwise own the contents of this article. Textual, Broadcast and Electronic* Reprint permission is granted, as long as the article is reprinted in its entirety with the above Name and E-mail included.  *Internet postings MUST link to this url also.  seekye1@earthlink.net or 505-627-2001 with any questions.
Also by Guy Malone: Gas Gougers = Hometown Terrorism  Sept 12, 2001

"America will never forget the sounds of our national anthem playing at Buckingham Palace..."
President Bush's speech to Congress, World September, 20 2001

In his letter,
Guy states
"They could have sent us flowers..." 

"They did send flowers, Guy, millions of them..." Janet Byers, Webservant, Harvest International Church