The day was pretty much like any other day in early September. Warm sun coming up later in the morning than the day before, with mist in the air causing a haze along the ground. Dew in the spiderwebs and a cold, light breeze - the cold, light breeze mixed with warming sunshine that makes me love Fall. We were driving to church with the radio on, but it wasn't the same popular music that's always on in the early Sunday mornings. Clips of interviews were on the radio, about 8.30 am, clips of frantic people muttering, cursing, screaming in reaction to a similar day 10 years ago. You can't help but feel something in your heart as you then hear the interviews of people from that day. My heart aches for the families left behind, and the mental anguish of those who worked so hard to save other people that day emotionally eclipsed by the guilt of survival. It's been 10 years, and people are still suffering.
I saw on TV on Sunday live video from the new memorial in New York City. It's a beautiful memorial and truly evokes memory of the day's events in anyone who saw footage from that day. It's a long way from that day 10 years ago, and our country has been struggling since. Struggling in a war against elusive and ruthless terrorism. While a long, costly and controversial struggle, it hasn't been by chance that attack plans have failed since then. And we've been struggling against the economic downturn from the shock of that September day. In this recession which leaves so many hungry and homeless, people are begging for help and leadership. But what was said a few years after the event about the day bringing our nation together in support of patriotism and countrymen has only become more true since then. Don't let the sacrifices of those people 10 years ago until now be in vain. Remember and respect their sacrifice and become engaged in your government and your nation.
... because you're human ... because you've felt this kind of pain ... because you can't imagine feeling this kind of pain ... because you are powerless to fix this broken life ... because there are so many more of them. They call out for help, broken, lost in this world of pain and suffering. I think one thing that made the 9/11 tragedy so terrible for so many people is because it bridged the gaps.
Every day bad things happen - all around the world. But this attack was on a symbol of hope, this was an emblem of international cooperation. And it was a symbol of the wealthy as well as representative of the land of promise for those less fortunate. This bridged the gap between politics, religion, ethnicity, country of origin, age, sex, race - and it dumped us all into a feeling of vulnerability.
Tomorrow will be 69 years from the date of the last attack on American soil before 9/11. 69 years to ease the pain and yet there are still people scarred forever by the impact of this attack. It's been over 9 years since 9/11, and these scars still scream fresh pain in many families. And many similar incidents occur all of the time around the world.
That is why those serving our country overseas are such heroes to me - both those on forgotten bases and training camps, and those on the front lines. The supply managers and those with the responsibility to rebuild following devastating events. These heroes risk their lives every day because they don't want anyone to have to suffer in the way in which so many people have. It makes me so angry inside every time I hear this song that I can't even cry, despite the fact that to not cry when exposed to that much sorrow in the form of another human is unreasonable and against human nature. Angry that there is no way to fix the fact that this and other tragedies have happened. Angry that there is no compassion for fellow man to prevent these atrocities in the first place. Angry that there are Americans more concerned about whether their dog can sue someone in court than they are about the suffering of their own; they are unwilling to even recognize the cry of desperation every day.
