Mood: celebratory
Topic: "Vom Winde Verweht" (2)
Old times are not soon forgotten in the Shire. Nearly every day Frodo is reminded, by a mellifluous reference, to some ancient bygone which lingers, just below the surface. In simpler terms, there is an abiding belief that, sooner or later, justice will be done, and things returned to the way God intended. That is why some people saved "Dixie Cups" every time they went to a soda fountain, for years. Frodo is pleased that there are very few soda fountains, any more.
Otis W. Smith wanted to be a medical doctor, and he had all the tools, except money. About to drop out of Meharry Medical College, he was informed by Dr. Benjamin Mays that an "anonymous donor" had created more than 40 scholarships for Morehouse graduates who were attending Medical School. He went on to become Georgia's first certified pediatrician who just happened to be black. Remembering the generosity of the unknown benefactor, he subsequently created scholarships at Morehouse.
The story does not end there, and that is the reason for Frodo taking note of the passing of this talented, and generous, medical practitioner. You see, dear reader, Dr. Smith found out late in his own life who that mysterious benefactor had been. It was a lady named Margaret Mitchell, who just happened to believe that the black community badly needed a better level of medical care than what was received during her lifetime. If the name sounds vaguely familiar, it should be, because she wrote one of the best books ever written, and she was long reviled for her "glorification" of the "Old South" in the masterful "Gone With the Wind."
Dr. Smith wrote a personal check for $10,000 and submitted the first private contribution for the restoration of Margaret Mitchell's home in downtown Atlanta.
Indeed, dear reader, old times are not forgotten, and that is what Frodo likes about the South. Frodo has not visited that house, but now he thinks it is something he will do. His kind of people lived there.
"Vom Winde Verweht" is the title as translated into German. Frodo first saw the movie, before he had read the book, in Frankfurt in German (without subtitles), and he cried, although a little slower than the German audience.
Posted by loveysdaddyga
at 7:45 PM EST