An Ordinary Mom's Musings

I had another post planned for today, but as it is 9/11, instead I’m sitting down to write my thoughts and feelings about this day.

17 years ago I lived just outside Washington DC in Virginia. Friends were in the White House and Pentagon that day. Friends pulled remains out of the Pentagon. We were very aware that there was a plane somewhere in the sky that was unaccounted for and they believed it was headed for D.C. If they found it they were going to shoot it down and it could come down anywhere. Ultimately that plane would crash in a field in Pennsylvania due to the bravery and courage of the people on board. I didn’t lose anyone that day. I sat at home watching as the second plane flew into the second tower. There are many moments that stand out vividly in my memory and I imagine will remain so for the rest of my life.

It was a day that for those of us who are old enough to remember and experienced it, a day that will forever mark our souls. It is something that even now, 17 years later is hard to grasp. Hard to understand.

There are many who have been born after 9/11. There are many who were too young to remember what happened that day. And so we have a responsibility to pass on those memories to them. But I am afraid that even as we say the words, “We will never forget,” we are unintentionally forgetting.

I remember the shock, the hurt, the unbelievable and incredible sadness and anger from that day. But I also remember a nation that was united together and found a common bond in our grief. People gathered in churches that week and held vigils. We reached out to one another and shared our grief and pain. We held our families and friends close and realized just how fragile life is. There was a unified purpose, and love of country throughout our land. We remembered what an amazing place this is to live and how blessed we were. We honored the lives of those that were lost and the brave souls who rushed in to help when all others were running away together.

Today I am remembering that unification and bond. Today I am asking myself where that has gone and how we could so quickly forget what 9/11 taught us that day.

Take a moment today, this week, this month and this year to reach out to others whom you may not know or understand. People who are different from you that you might not ordinarily interact with. Remember our common bonds. Find common ground. In doing so we will continue to honor those who lost their lives, their loved ones and their innocence that day.