Worlds... But not Hearts... apart

My Mom left for Istanbul, Turkey 3:00pm Monday, to start a tour of the lands
of Homer's Odyssey.  She was to arrive 3:00pm Tuesday, via London.  At the
time, we didn't know if she was going to be stuck in London, or if the tour
was going to be cancelled.  Or even, for sure, if she was safe.

I tried calling the hotel in Istanbul a dozen times, but never got through.
So I e-mailed the hotel, and got the following exchange.  I got a little
long-winded, as is my wont, on my last e-mail (towards the top).  I just
found great relief in reading the words from the man at the hotel.  It was
very heart-warming, to me anyway.  I pass it along in the hopes that others
might find comfort as I have.  We have seen Evil on such a monumental scale,
so it is easy to overlook the millions of such small kindnesses.  They are
so small, that most will go unnoticed.  But they do add up to a powerful
Good, one person at a time.

Love and prayers for all human beings...



------------------------------

-----Original Message-----
From: The Kybele Hotel [mailto:info@kybelehotel.com]
Sent: Thursday, September 13, 2001 11:18 AM
To: jt
Subject: Re: Regarding guest of hotel - Vera Txxxx

Dear Mr. Txxxx,

Greetings again from our sad hearts for Americans. I learned from my family
that we have to love all the humans as they were created by god. If we
respect the God, we should love all the people and we should not distinguish
them as ugly , rich , poor or whatever...I am strongly against this
ideology. These are my words really coming from hearth. I would like to
repeat that I wish I could be there to do something , at least to save one
of the lost life, or breath that smoke of the fire to be able to share the
sadness of the people over there. We are really getting more sorry , hour by
hour , as we follow the news and see the density of the tragedy. May god
have mercy on all the people and protect us from that kind of ''ugly people
''

As you did I could not stop myself to share your words with the others in
here and saw that they are as sorry as an American citizen who lived that
catastrophe.

Regards to our American friends from the Turkish hearts,
Vefa Yuksukcuoglu ( Mr )



----- Original Message -----
From: "jt"
To: "The Kybele Hotel" <info@kybelehotel.com>
Sent: Thursday, September 13, 2001 1:55 AM
Subject: RE: Regarding guest of hotel - Vera Txxxx


> Mr. or Ms. Yuksukcuoglu (please excuse my ignorance)
>
> In this Internet age, the courtesy of a reply is often dismissed casually.
> One considers oneself lucky to get a fast-food order correctly, and has
even
> come to expect to pay without getting even a "Thank you".
>
> I was pleasantly surprised to get your e-mails, and consider that you did
an
> outstanding job of customer service, which I do not take for granted
> anymore.
>
>
>
> I thank you kindly for writing "We wish we could do more than e-mailing
you
> about your mom's safety information, for the people who were damaged over
> there."  But I also want you to know how heart-warming your words are to
me
> and my family, and a few friends I've shared this with.  If I wasn't numb
> from the events, and from working unbearably long hours the past few
> weeks... I would cry.
>
> Everyone in the world, including we Americans, are familiar with the
> stereotype of the "Ugly American" and there are certainly more than a few
> that fit that image.  But I think most Americans, like myself, are only
> vaguely aware that there are probably many people, such as yourself, who
> understand that people are people:
>
> That the "Ugly American" in no way represents the majority of Americans,
> anymore than these insane hijackers represent the views of most people
> outside America.  And that, if some actions of our government are hateful
to
> certain peoples, Americans are not generally hateful people.
>
>
> That is why, at times like these, I feel an overwhelming relief to "hear"
> the words in your e-mail.  I cannot express my gratitude adequately...
The
> closest I can come is to say I feel graced that you should write these
words
> to me, because they are exactly what I needed to hear.
>
> It is for this reason that I ask your permission to share this exchange
with
> a small computer-related Internet forum, that a few other Americans might
> find the relief I've found in your words.
>
>
> It is odd how my Mom's tour relates to the events of the day.  She is
taking
> a tour that is re-tracing the adventures of Ulysses in Homer's Odyssey.  I
> wrote a few friends the following, this morning:
>
> "It's funny, because my Mom was telling us about the story of Homer's
> Odyssey, the night before she left.  I didn't recall how some of the
stories
> we hear as children (the story of the evil Cyclops, and Ullyses being tied
> to the mast, to avoid the siren of the Godess who wants him) originate
from
> this story.  But I never knew that the overriding moral theme of the
Odyssey
> is the concept of Xenos, which is the kindness displayed to strangers.
The
> point is made throughout, that you can judge the quality of a people by
how
> much Xenos they have."
>
> "The Odyssey was written in 700 BC, but obviously applies today more than
> ever."
>
>
> Judging by your e-mails, that were just from one stranger to another in a
> time of need:  I would judge that the people of Turkey have Xenos, of the
> highest order, akin to that of the nation that helped Ulysses finally get
> back home.
>
> Whether or not you give permission for me to share these e-mails is
> unimportant.  I can't thank you enough...
>
>
> Regards from one heart to another,
> jt
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Kybele Hotel [mailto:info@kybelehotel.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2001 10:39 AM
> To: jt
> Subject: Re: Regarding guest of hotel - Vera Txxxx
>
>
> Dear Mr. Txxxx,
>
> Thank you very much for your message. We wish we could do more than
> e-mailing you about your mom's safety information, for the people who were
> damaged over there. There is nothing more important than a human life in
the
> world. There is no reason can be shown that this attack is right. We all
> condemn this attack from our hearts. And , we all hope there is no more
> attacks in any part of our world.
>
> Your mom and her friend just left for the ship journey. We were happy to
> accommodate such cute ladies. We also hope to accommodate yourself some
> point in the future.
>
> Regard with our hopes for a peaceful world,
> Vefa Yuksukcuoglu
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "jt"
> To: "The Kybele Hotel" <info@kybelehotel.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2001 2:54 PM
> Subject: RE: Regarding guest of hotel - Vera Txxxx
>
>
> > Vefa,
> >
> > Thank you so much, for letting us know about our Mom, and for your
> > sympathies.  We also got an e-mail from her.
> >
> > Yesterday was a sad day, for the entire world.  But your reply just
shows
> > how most people in the world treat each other very kindly.  The same way
> > they would like to be treated.  This is easy to forget, these days, but
> your
> > being so helpful shows the truth of the matter.
> >
> > It is such a relief to know that Mom is safe.  But your kindness in
> looking
> > into the matter, and your sympathies, actually mean just as much.  As it
> > confirms my faith in my "fellow man", at a time when I need that faith
> > confirmed very badly.
> >
> > Thank you so much.
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Jxxxx Txxxx
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: The Kybele Hotel [mailto:info@kybelehotel.com]
> > Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2001 3:09 AM
> > To: jt
> > Subject: Re: Regarding guest of hotel - Vera Txxxx
> >
> >
> > Dear Mr. Txxxx,
> >
> > Greetings from Istanbul. First of all , we would like to inform you that
> we
> > are very sorry for the attack on U.S.A.
> >
> > Our guest Ms. Vera Txxxx arrived our hotel safely and they are going to
> join
> > the tour today. A copy of this message was printed out and passed on
her.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Vefa Yuksukcuoglu
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "jt"
> > To: <info@kybelehotel.com>
> > Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2001 3:39 AM
> > Subject: Regarding guest of hotel - Vera Txxxx
> >
> >
> > > Sir or Madam,
> > >
> > > I would like to know if it is possible to find out if a guest has
> arrived
> > at
> > > your hotel.
> > >
> > > The guest's name is Vera Txxxx.  She was scheduled to arrive last
night,
> > > around 11:00pm or 12:00 your time.
> > >
> > > If she has arrived, I would also like to send her a message, if
> possible.
> > > The message is:  "Please call, when you get a chance, to let us know
you
> > > arrived safely and whether your plans have changed."
> > >
> > >
> > > Thank you very much, in advance, for your trouble.
> > >
> > > Jxxxx Txxxx
> > > Columbus, OH, USA
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>