J. E. Knowles

April 20, 2013

"If I was a Londoner..." sings Tanita Tikaram in "Valentine's Heart." I've heard that only people born in London can be "Londoners," though when we come together and pull off a big event--like the Olympic and Paralympic Games last summer, or the marathon tomorrow--it sure feels like we're all Londoners.

In the midst of this week's bad news, particularly in the States, I happened to be reading a novel called 96 Hours, by Georgia Beers. Her characters are stranded airline passengers on September 11, 2001, who are hosted by the residents of Gander, Newfoundland. Until I read 96 Hours, I hadn't realized that the number of "Plane People" who stayed in Gander alone outnumbered (by thousands) all of the victims of the terrorist attacks that day. It was a much-needed reminder of what an international community we are.

So I wrote a post about America, Canada, and 20 things that I love. You can see it here: http://jeknowles.blogspot.com.

Thanks for reading.