Japanese has a word for how a lot of us feel about you, America. Urayamashii. It means envy. But the good kind. No bitterness. Just, "I wish I could be like that." So I asked forty Japanese people who have lived in America: "What about Americans makes you urayamashii?" Here's what they said. "When they lose, they say 'Next year.' I met a man in Chicago who had been saying it for sixty years. I have never seen faith like that. Not even in a temple." (Retired salaryman, 71) "They apologize in two words. 'My bad.' Done. In Japan, an apology is a three-act play with an intermission." (Office worker, 33) "At a 5K in Ohio, the loudest roar of the whole day was for the last runner. She was 81. Nobody went home until she crossed." (Nurse, 44) "A car with JUST MARRIED on the back drove through a little town in Tennessee, and every single car honked. An old man mowing his lawn stopped and lifted his cap. They had no idea who we were. It was my husband and me." (Bride, 31) "A boy knocked on my door in Michigan selling wrapping paper for his school. I hesitated. My neighbor yelled from across the street, 'BUY THE PAPER!' I bought the paper. I have bought the paper every year since. I own eleven rolls." (Engineer, 46) "A little girl told me she's going to be an astronaut and a veterinarian. Simultaneously. On the moon. Her parents said, 'Sounds great, honey.' Nobody laughed. In America, nobody laughs at a kid's dream." (Teacher, 41) "On a street in Georgia, there was a yellow ribbon on one tree. My host mom said it meant somebody in that house was far away, serving. Nobody on the street asked about it. Everyone just waved at that house a little longer." (Student, 19) Then I asked my wife's grandmother. She's 94. She lived through the war, and everything after it. She didn't need to think. "Because they are not embarrassed to hope," she said. "We hope quietly. Inside. So nobody can see if it doesn't come true. Americans hope out loud. With everybody watching. Again and again. That is the bravest thing I know." America, lately you seem a little embarrassed. Don't be. We've been wishing we could hope like you for eighty years.