The Foreign Service Journal, February 2007

88 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 7 R EFLECTIONS The Whole World Was Watching — Except Me B Y M ARY G RACE M C G EEHAN H aving grown up in the Washington, D.C., area and spent 20 years in the Foreign Service, I’ve had a number of oppor- tunities to witness history up close. Unfortunately, I have blown every sin- gle one. I started young, in 1977. My fami- ly had managed to get a prime viewing location at President Carter’s inaugur- al parade. In a break from tradition, the new president got out of his lim- ousine and strolled down Pennsyl- vania Avenue hand-in-hand with his wife Rosalynn, who was wearing an ice-blue coat. “There they are!” my mother said. “Where?” I asked. “Right in front of us!” she ans- wered. All I could see were security vehicles, Secret Service men and, eventually, the back of an ice-blue coat receding into the distance. Mexico City, June 1986. I had just arrived for my first Foreign Service assignment, and Mexico was hosting the World Cup. Friends of a col- league had managed to get tickets to the quarterfinal match between England and Argentina, and invited me along. We had seats near one of the goals. I followed the game fairly closely, but took a break from time to time to watch the fans’ antics. I was looking across the field at some sing- ing British spectators when pandemo- nium erupted. A few yards in front of me, superstar Diego Maradona had scored a goal for Argentina. Or so the referees said. The English side contended that he had knocked the ball in with his hand. After the game, Maradona fur- ther fueled the debate by saying that the goal had come “un poco con la cabeza de Maradona y otro poco con la mano de Dios” (a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God). Decades later, fans still discuss the “Hand of God” play, per- haps the most famous in soccer histo- ry. I only wish I could give you my eyewitness perspective. Cape Town, February 1990. A heady week and a half had passed since F.W. de Klerk’s announcement that Nelson Mandela would be released. A friend of mine was going to the prison in the small town of Paarl, so I tagged along. We took a spot with the international press corps and waited for hours in the blazing sun until, finally, my friend said, “There he is!” I can vividly picture that moment: Nelson and Winnie Mandela side by side, their hands raised triumphantly in liberation salutes. Except — and you can prob- ably guess this by now — my image is based on press pictures. All I saw was the backs of a bunch of journalists’ heads. I console myself that at least I was there for these historic events, a wit- ness to the atmosphere and spectacle if not to the famous moment. But I can’t even say that for the Orioles- Yankees game on Sept. 20, 1998. I had tickets, the last of the year on my season plan. But I was in Princeton, two hours from Baltimore, and it was a night game. I opted instead for a good night’s sleep. The next day, well-rested, I had to satisfy myself with reading the news accounts. After the first out, a picture of Cal Ripken had appeared on the scoreboard. A roar went up from the bleachers. The “Iron Man” was end- ing his record-breaking streak of 2,632 consecutive games played. Ripken came out of the dugout to take a bow, the Yankees tipped their hats in tribute and, as the cheering crowd refused to quiet, the legendary shortstop came out and waved to the fans again. It sounds like quite a moment. Oh, well. If I’d gone to the game, I probably would have been in the bathroom. Mary Grace McGeehan joined the Foreign Service in 1986, and has been posted in Mexico, Cambodia, Hait, and South Africa (twice). In Wash- ington, she has worked on the South Africa and Vietnam desks and in the Office of the Inspector General. She received a mid-career master’s degree from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University in 1999. She is currently deputy chief of mission in Vientiane. A few yards in front of me, superstar Diego Maradona had scored a goal for Argentina. Or so the referees said.