Roland (CA->WA) on Letters from an American

[Roland (CA->WA)]

I'm in your general neighborhood every week. Thanks for the mention of Buenos Aires, now I will always remember that about you. Living somewhere else in your teens gives you an international view of the world that is indelible. My teenage friends were from every country imaginable. You get to see what makes the rest of the world tick, and you get to see how your home country is just a small part of the vast sea of nations. It's hard to be an arrogant nationalist (or culturally illiterate) when your classmates are from Germany, Israel, Finland, France, Poland, Britain, and yes Canada (Alfred E. was his name) and when your sister's best friend is the daughter of a diplomat from Thailand. I once wrote a greeting card for a secret Santa designee, and I was able to accumulate "I Love You" in over 3 dozen languages. Before the internet, not an easy task, except that I just had to buttonhole students, easy. I still remember some of the more obscure ones: Finnish "ma rakastan sua."

[Wendy Raksin]

Roland, back to CA

Yes. I think living in Argentina formed who I am. I don't see the world in the same ethnocentric way many people I know do. I went to the American School. I too had friends from all over the world. Many were diplomats kids. We were not. We lived there because my dad opened up a motion picture production company there. We traveled around filming. I was there when Juan Perón came back into power. Were were filming in a town called Salta during the coup. Martial law had been declared. Only police, police dogs, and tear gas filled the streets. We wanted to get back to our home in Buenos Aires. We hid in the back of a darkened airline office leaving for the airport only once the police passed. It was quite an adventure.