Madeleine Albright was speaking today at Marian College and one of my co-workers invited me to go over our lunch hour to watch. Having been suffering from a persistent headache for three days now, I nearly declined, but, trying to live in step with my YOLD goals, I rallied and agreed.
Madeleine Albright is remarkable. She's brilliant, one of the best statespeople of our time but she's also completely accessible and engaging. She mentioned a personal goal of wanting to "Make foreign policy less foreign" and her own efforts toward that end are apparent in her speaking style. She's also modest. After her introduction she entered the stage thanking the host for introducing her, noting that people didn't always know who she was. She then recounted a recent episode where she was in an airport "undressing for TSA" so she could get back to the states.
A woman in the security line behind her asked her where she got her travel bottles with the screw lids. Albright told her she got them at the Container Store and continued organizing her belongings on the conveyor. She then stepped up to the metal detector when the security guard looked up and exclaimed, "It's you!" The man was overjoyed, he was from Bosnia and totally flipped out. He told her how without her there would be no Bosnia and held up the entire line so he could get a picture with her.
When she was finished, she continued on through security and the woman behind her asked, "What was that all about?"
Albright answered "Oh, I used to be Secretary of State."
The woman, still confused, asked, "Of Bosnia?"
Ok, that's all for now. More soon though, I promise!
