by Sandra Craig, Media, PA

I was in Salzburg, Austria on a semester abroad from my college, Drew University, living in a house with Austrian, American, and other international students. In the days before internet and i-pods, the music we listened to was from tape players and casettes we’d brought with us from home. Some of mine were of my then favorite band, Lynyrd Skynyrd.

My roommate and I had split the cost of a transistor radio, in order to have access to something other than our limited supply of cassettes & also to have more exposure to the German language. The only station that played anything like the rock we listened to at home, & that had news in English, was the Armed Forces Network (AFN). One morning, I woke up & turned on AFN. “Free Bird” ws playing, & I thought nothing of it as I dressed. When the song ended, there was a moment of silence, then the DJ said that the plane carrying the band had crashed, killing some, including Ronnie VanZant, and injuring others. I was stunned. I cried tears of disbelief, protest, sadness– & homesickness.

To this day, one of my favorite songs is Charlie Daniels’ tribute to the great departed souls of rock including, of course, his buddy Ronnie. And to this day, as often as I hear “Free Bird”, I still shed a tear of protest.