Via Bill Quick, this tragic story of a man losing his family – and his all-too-rare, excellent attitude about it.
SAN DIEGO, California (CNN) — A Korean immigrant who lost his wife, two children and mother-in-law when a Marine Corps jet slammed into the family’s house said Tuesday he did not blame the pilot, who ejected and survived.
“Please pray for him not to suffer from this accident,” a distraught Dong Yun Yoon told reporters gathered near the site of Monday’s crash of an F/A-18D jet in San Diego’s University City community.
“He is one of our treasures for the country,” Yoon said in accented English punctuated by long pauses while he tried to maintain his composure.
“I don’t blame him. I don’t have any hard feelings. I know he did everything he could,” said Yoon, flanked by members of San Diego’s Korean community, relatives and members from the family’s church.
I got a little choked up by this one. I think its kind of sad that we’ve become so used to the blame game that when we hear about people reacting with genuine goodwill and selflessness in the face of tragedy, it is surprising. The man loses his family in this crash, and his reaction? To hope that the pilot is okay. In addition, Quick offers this sobering insight:
Sometimes, in my cynicism, I think that the average American’s reaction to experiencing a tragedy like this would be to first look for somebody or something to blame, then look for somebody to sue, and, finally, look for the government to pass some sort of law or create some sort of body to “make sure this never happens again.”
It’s humbling and uplifiting both to realize that those who come to this country seem to understand what was once called the American Way better than many of those who have been here for half a dozen generations.
My sympathies, as well as my deepest respect, go to Mr. Yoon today.