It’s been more than a decade. In fact, next Tuesday it will be eleven years and if odds were available at offshore betting ventures or in Las Vegas, most people would bet everything within their reach that 9 people out of 10 would remember exactly where they were, what they were doing, even what they were wearing on that day.
They remember, as do you and I, every detail about the morning of September 11, 2001.
And without fail, as this day approaches each year, within each of us is the increased awareness that there is one thing we no longer can remember and that is what it means to be without fear, without worry—not the fear and worry that accompany’s normal life; no we are talking about the fear and worry that comes with the touch of terror.
That day—the day that, more so than any other day in history, impacted and changed the life of every American; that day that hurt more than any expression of words could ever define.
But on that day, we didn’t know it, but we learned lessons that would enable us to push forward through any circumstances.
And now on that day, we are reminded of how profoundly different everything is. How we look at the world, how they look at us and how we look at ourselves. The changes to our everyday lives seem never ending. Everything is different from the security at airports, buildings and bridges to the cost of goods.
But in the center of all the change there remains one thing that remains unflappable. It is the one thing that never faltered. Not ever, not one bit.
The American spirit took flight at the same time flights across this country were being excised from the skies at the hands of monsters.
And we have lived the last eleven years as we said we would; no matter what, we would not be destroyed. We would stand together and move forward with the same determination that built this country. The same determination, that most assuredly is one of the abstract targets of terrorism.
We may have been shaken, but we were never broken. We have done what we do best; put our differences aside, form a unified front against any threats and keep walking ahead, without fail.
This year as we move toward remembering collectively, once more, and marking the indescribable horror of that day for the eleventh time, we would do well to look at the amount of fortitude, love, patriotism, trust, faith and confidence with which we have carried on since we were leveled by unfathomable brutality.
Yes, like a Phoenix that is sure to rise from the ashes, the American people have continued to soar above a horizon heavily dotted with evil.
And although our land, our air and our seas can be infiltrated by those who would seek to disrupt all that is good, we can never be disrupted.
And in the memory of everyone lost to us on that day, we will continue to walk toward the time when we can finally say it is over; evil has been defeated.
And so on Tuesday take the time to remember and reflect on where we were, where we have gone since and where we stand today.
Offer a moment of silence in your life for those lost . And to yourself, offer the comfort of knowing no matter what happens, we’ll be there for each other, always. It’s just who we are. We are Americans.
