Laguna Niguel resident Mary Falck, who is just completing 8th grade at Aliso Viejo Middle School, represented the San Clemente Elks Lodge 2058 in a patriotic writing competition. She placed first in the district and second in the states of California and Hawaii with her essay, “Why I am Proud to be an American.”
The oldest of four children, Mary has completed three years of middle school with a straight-A average and is an accomplished violinist and pianist. Her parents are Robert and Gwen Falck.
“Why I am Proud to be an American”
By Mary Falck
I was six years old when I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. I marched from the ice cream place and over the East River with appreciation. I looked back with pride and looked up in awe. I felt reverence and a certain peace as I looked across the New York skyline. The experience was much bigger than anything I had done before.
Five years later I couldn’t get myself across the Golden Gate Bridge. When I stepped onto the bridge and looked down upon the mighty sea, I broke down. This bridge, like the Brooklyn Bridge, was much bigger than myself. However, as I got older, the same majesty I had experienced five years earlier was terrifying to me.
Between the ages of six and eleven, I learned more about life, and the terrors and joys that come with it. When I was young, I focused on the Empire State building. As I got older, I began to notice the gap where the Twin Towers once stood.
There is a bright side in every terror –- on the other side of the bridge. Together we learn from our mistakes and look beyond the darkness. I am proud to be an American because no matter our race, religion, or circumstance, we can work together to cross our personal and national bridges. That is our goal –- to stand as one, work together, and enjoy the freedoms that we have. If this is always our purpose, there is no bridge that we won’t be able to cross.
