Naturalization Ceremony

I was priviledged, last week, to be invited to a naturalization ceremony at our tiny courthouse. This is the second such ceremony that I have attended and alos the second one to be held here in Jackson. There were 9 nations represented among those sworn in.
At the ceremony, I was forced to think of the desire and the effort involved in becoming an American citizen. There was, in the faces of those taking the oath, solemness and delight at the same time. Those gathered to watch, many standing on the sides and even out into the hall, seem to have the same emotions. It was moving.