I have been studiously avoiding all of the hoopla surrounding the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy. I have an aversion to American media hype, and since I was only 3 1/2 at the time I don’t have any personal memories of the event.
I do know that my family were living in Karachi, Pakistan at the time, having just moved there from a smaller city in the middle of the Sind Desert.
A friend and colleague of my parents sent me a copy of something he submitted to the Macon Telegraph in which he recounts his memory of that day. It also turned out to be a sweet reminder of my dad. He graciously said that I could share it on here:
“I was in Karachi, Pakistan, recuperating from a severe bout of malaria. My wife and I were staying in the home of missionary colleagues. Coming in from fetching the morning newspaper, our hostess, Grace, shouted to her husband words that sounded like, “Sam, our kitty has died.” We all ran to her and saw the large headlines, “KENNEDY HAS DIED.” An ordained American minister, Sam was asked by the U.S. consular general to conduct a memorial service the next day for the large American community. With very little time to put together such an event, Sam asked for my help in writing the eulogy. From my bed, I did so. Before a packed out crowd of Americans and other nationalities, he read the eulogy.”
Thanks Uncle Hu!