Excerpt from “The Gypsy’s Song” Angelica comes to America with her family:
“Suddenly, there was a very loud shout. People began pointing and cheering. We watched America come forth, out to the sea, to greet us. Joyous crying began on the decks.
‘Look at her, there she is. There she is. Look.’ I did look. Off to the right, very tall buildings seemed to swim on the water, but no one was looking at them. What had caused the shout was a colossus of a statue of a woman in the middle of the harbor. I thought she had to be a queen, for she wore a crown; her noble face held welcome and goodness. In case we had become lost, she held a flaming torch, high, so as to light whatever darkness assailed us. Next to her body, she held a book.
Everyone on the ship stood, transfixed, mouths gaping as we stared at her. She welcomed us all, beckoning us all to come unto America. The gadje man next to me said she was called the Statue of Liberty, given in friendship to America by the French long ago. She was meant to be a reassurance to all those who sought shelter that they were now home.
As he said those words, his eyes and mine flooded with tears. What am I crying for, I wondered. And then I knew. Ever since that terrible night when Marianna and all of my friends were slaughtered, I had been searching for safety. This Statue of Liberty had delved into my deepest desires and revealed them to me. She appeared powerful enough to protect whoever entered the land over which she vigilantly watched.
Long after the Vadim passed the Statue of Liberty, I could not stop watching her, the generosity in her face. I very much liked what I had seen of America so far, I decided. “
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