German Unity Day

Today is our national holiday- the day we celebrate the German reunification. It's already been 17 years, but when I see the pictures of people climbing over the Berlin Wall, it always manages to give me goosebumps. Although I was only 12 at that time, I still remember everything about those weeks, especially since I have family living in the former GDR. We were all so excited and enthusiastic that we were finally a united nation, again.

Although in many people's mind some of that enthusiasm has disappeared, I believe we should be proud of our nation. Of course, there are still some difficulties left, but that's a small prize to pay for what truly has been a historic event.

Did I mention that besides being a complete sports nut, I'm also a huge music fan- pretty much covering all kinds of music from rock or punk music to hip hop or country. But there are only very few bands or musicians that make me buy their CD whenever something new comes out, including Tara MacLean, Sarah McLachlan (yep, I seem to prefer Canadian artists, it seems), or the Push Stars (I first saw them performing at the University of Wisconsin at LaCrosse where they took part in MTV's Choose or Lose, and have been a fan ever since).

And then there's my favorite band, Matchbox Twenty (although it's a close call between those guys and the Push Stars). They were gone for quite some time, but now they're back and you can imagine my surprise, when I saw their new video and there were scenes from the German Reunification in it. It's called "How far we've come".

It chronicles many big events in history: landing on the moon, President Kennedy, the feminist movement, Pele, tearing down the Berlin wall, Live Aide, the new millennium, Princess Diana, the Middle East peace process, Live Earth, and minorities (at least when it comes to their representation in politics) as front runners for President (Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton).