Autumn in New York is a colorful and exhilarating experience. The air is fresh but not cold. The weather is, of course, changeable. As October 3 rolled around, 4,000-plus Unificationists made their way into Belvedere on a perfect autumn day, to experience a day together with our True Parents.

A series of huge tents had been erected at Belvedere around the Holy Rock area, complete with rows and columns of neatly arranged folding chairs. The tents were so big, in fact, that the Holy Rock seemed like a little pebble! And, it certainly seemed that there were a "ton" of brothers and sisters there.

As the band played a fanfare, our True Parents arrived for the 9:00 a.m. Holy Day address. Father spoke into the afternoon, often leaving the stage and walking down the aisle in the center of the main tent. Father spoke about the victorious dispensational era in which we find ourselves. Father emphasized personal purity, speaking very graphically and at length about the problems of temptation which we all face. He stressed unchanging, absolute and eternal marital fidelity - a true love between husband and wife which lies at the very core of Gods purpose of creation.

At 3:00 p.m. the much-anticipated entertainment began. Our True Parents sat atop an elevated seating area in the middle of the tent. David Eaton conducted members of the New York City Symphony and the Goldman Memorial Band in the opening salvo: beautiful liturgical music from the New and Completed Testament ages. The Voices of Christ singers, led by Rev. Philip Thomas, sang some wonderful a capella gospel, their voices creating an amazing delicate harmony. ___, Isamu Nakashio and Adruma Victoria followed with a medley of Japanese and South American songs.

Next, the congregation sat back and marveled at a video highlighting True Parents dispensation in 1999. It is miraculous indeed to witness how so much is done by so few, to paraphrase Winston Churchill. Popular singer Mzuri rocked the audience with her reggae performance of Soulin a song written by David Eaton in connection with the participation of several high-level Ugandan delegates at the last Hoon Dok Hae conference.

The grand finale feature a panoply of many of our talented brothers and sisters led by Dan Fefferman performing a Fefferman original, Celebrate It. The audience joined in rapt enthusiasm and finally our True Parents rose to their feet. True Father danced, putting many of us "younger" folks to shame! While this author is not exactly a student of dance, Fathers dance certainly appeared to be none other than the Twist! To cap it off, Father turned and gave Mother a big kiss on the cheek!

And so the day wound down, as happy families made their way home, filled with memories to last for eternity. Many thanks are due to our executive staff and our indomitable crew, including: Dr. Chang Shik Yang, Rev. Phillip Schanker, David Eaton, Peter van Geldern, Kevin Pickard, Alistair Farrant, Simon Kinney, Hiro Shimoyama, Ken Owens, Steve Honey, Jorg Heller, Ann Smart, Jonathan Gullery, Kevin Smith, Magnus Larsson, Rev. Yasuhiro Hori, Rev. and Mrs. Peter Kim, Michael McDevitt, Paul Fontaine, Mike Inglis, Marilyn Onoda, Nobuo Shibuya, Toshiko Izukawa, Misao Trabing, Eric Erstling (and his crew of ten second-generation!), ushers from UTS and UB, and many, many more.

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