One man’s voice

Remembering

Posted on September 11th, 2007 in My Thoughts, On Patriotism, Personal Messages

Do you remember that day? The day our country’s perception of national security, public safety, heroism and sacrifice changed forever? Do you remember?

I am not one to dwell on the past and it is not my intention to do so here. I am one, however, that likes to remember those moments that have become an everlasting moment etched into the minds of those that experienced it. The September 11, 2001 terrorist hijackings and subsequent attacks on the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon (as well as the crash of flight 93 in Pennsylvania) left America scarred and hurting. It made a lot of people afraid, even more people concerned for their own souls and almost every American angrier than hell that anyone would ever conceive such a notion as to carry out such a deliberate and coordinated plan of attack on a predominantly civilian group of people. It was a dark day in the United States on that September 11. Maybe the darkest of days.

The things I remember most about that morning was how shocked I was to see what was happening. I had just gotten out of the shower and had sat down on the couch to put my socks and shoes on. There is nothing memorable about that… I do it almost everyday. But as I sat down and turned on ESPN to catch highlights of the Monday Night Football game between the Denver Broncos and the New York Giants from the night before I was taken to another place. Every channel had CNN’s coverage of a large fire burning at the top of the World Trade Center North Tower. The reporter was stating that there had been talks of an airplane accident or perhaps some form of explosion at the tower. At the time, about 5:58 AM in California, it was still unknown as to what was going on. A few minutes later, after fumbling through several channels on the TV only to find CNN on all of them, I realized this was a bigger story than a burning building in New York.

Then I saw it. The second plane blasted its way into the South face of the World Trade Center South Tower. I stopped dead in my tracks. Did I really just see what I thought I saw? Did a huge jet airplane really crash into the World Trade Center, at an angle, low on the face of the building taking out a huge section of the building’s floors and a major support section of the South corner? I was horrified. I was saddened. I was shocked.

I sat still on the couch watching the story unfold. Reports started coming in of firefighters being dispatched. More reports came in. There was a report that the Pentagon had been bombed. Another report said the White House had been attacked. The US Air Force was reported to have been deployed to the air space above Washington DC and New York with attack orders to bring down any suspect aircraft. The FAA grounded all flights immediately.

I watched the news until I had to leave for work. In my boss’s office there was a TV on which we watched more of the story unfold. We learned that this was more than likely a terrorist attack. We learned that there were people trapped in the upper floors of the towers and that rescue efforts were being stymied by heat and smoke. Images were being broadcast of people waving their hands outside of their windows from the floors above the crash sites as the smoke got heavier and heavier. Then it happened. The South Tower collapsed. I remember thinking about how many people were still in that building and how many rescue personnel must have been in that building, running up stairs to get to the victims on the higher floors. And I remember thinking that if this tower has just come down there is a strong likelihood that other one will. And it did.

There are really no words to describe how I felt that morning as I watched, helplessly, from the other side of the nation. Part of me wanted to reach out and start kicking some terrorist butt. Part of me wanted to reach out to the children that had just been orphaned. Part of me wanted to reach out to the families of the rescue teams that surely lost loved ones just a few minutes earlier. I remember too, going outside, and not seeing a single airplane in the sky. And I remember thinking that the face of American security will be changing from that point on.

I went home that day and hugged my wife and my kids stronger and longer that I had ever done. Sometimes I am saddened at the thought that because of this tragedy I felt the need to be closer to my family when I should be feeling that need daily. And I began to consider how much I have taken for granted in my life, and how the poor men, women and children that lost their lives that day would never be able to, face to face, reconcile what was happening in their lives that morning.

The rest of the evening was spent with my wife and children talking about what had happened, how they felt and what we could learn from it. We also prayed as a family. We prayed for the families of those directly affected by the tragedy, the rescue teams that would not leave the site no matter what, the news media and reporting staff, our President George W. Bush, our military personnel and everyone else that was affected or could be affected by the incident. Then we prayed for the terrorists. I know that may sound weird, but the Bible tells us to do this. We also prayed for justice to be swift and effective, and we prayed that those involved in the planning, plotting and carrying out of the plans be captured.

I know much of what we prayed for has yet to materialize. But I would encourage you, on this day of remembrance, as you remember where you were the day America was terrorized, that you pray for these things as well. There are still people responsible for these attacks at large. They need to be brought to justice. There are still people hurting from these attacks. They need to be healed. We all need to be healed. Please, in your prayers, remember this day, those who were most greatly affected by it, those that still hold that day very close to heart.