photo credit: Scott Hudson * via photopin cc
Today, I was thinking about the events of 9/11 and how instantly so many lives were changed. As we were driving home yesterday from the grocery store, I thought to myself, how many people were just going about, doing their normal routine things on September 10, 2001? No one could have predicted how the world would change just twenty-four hours later.
As I tucked my kids in bed last night, I thought about all the parents who weren't able to tuck their children in ever again. And all those parents who were holding their children close, trying to comfort them while searching for the words to explain what had happened.
This morning, while I ate breakfast with my little ones, I thought about how I would change my goodbye as they went out the door, if I knew that was the last time we'd be together.
If nothing else, today's date reminds me that my life isn't a guarantee. Being with my family isn't a given. Life can change in an instant. Hold it close. Hold those you love close and tell them what they mean to you.
Never forget the lessons of 9/11.
2 comments:
I saw on Facebook this morning that a fellow writer wished not to be reminded about the sadness of 9/11. There is too much TV coverage, too much talking about it. All she wanted to remember was happy things, and then she went on to list of few of those things that make her happy. I thought, "how shallow of her."
I don't know how young this woman is. I guess that might make a difference in her response to such a huge tragedy as having terrorist seizing four airliners and crashing them into three buildings, killing close to 3,000 people. I really wanted to write a comment to her, telling her that the reason we have a yearly remembrance of the September 11th attack is so that we'd be less likely to let the same thing happen to us again. But I got the feeling all my words would do is aggravate her.
My husband is at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland for a week long class, and that is the site of the National 9/11 Memorial where they had a solemn ceremony this morning in remembrance of all the first responders killed. The phrase, "Never Forget" is prevalent. While this young woman would rather just forget about all the dead, probably because it never personally impacted her, I will remember the ultimate sacrifice every firefighter, every police officer made running into the Twin Towers and Pentagon and never made it out alive. They don't deserve to be forgotten.
Thank you for this, Debra. It really made me think about what I can do to help my family never forget.
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