Lou Reed – Berlin

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

The Beirut bombings. The Mets winning the World Series. The Challenger Explosion. All events that occurred in the early stages of my lifetime and thus, I have no memory of them ever occurring. The aforementioned events are mentally categorized in the same group as Vietnam, Reconstruction, and the Pax Romana. History.

Yet, today I was reminded of when I first started “being aware” that there was more going on in life than what snack I got to enjoy after coming home from school. I remember watching the evening news on November 8, 1989 and curiously wondering why these angry folks were destroying this cement wall with sledgehammers. I remember thinking “gee, I’d love to take a sledgehammer to a cement wall if I ever got the chance”.

I suppose you could say that November 8, 1989 brought about my awareness of global events (albeit without much interest until many years later). Coincidentally, November 8, 1989 also brought about my cousin, who is celebrating 20 years of life today! Happy birthday, Micah!