Random Thoughts as the Anniversary of 9/11 Approaches
- Posted by Beth (Blue Star Chronicles) on September 8th, 2007 filed in The War
I wonder if any of us can help but have our thoughts travel back to that Tuesday morning of September 11, 2001. When I watched the horrors unfold on television that morning, along with the rest of our country, I knew that it was one of those defining moments in life. The before and after moments. Before I had children and after I had children. Before my father died and after my father died. Moments that change our lives forever and are dividing points in our lives. Life before 9/11 and life after 9/11.
One of the things that sticks in my mind from those first days following 9/11 was that there were no planes in the sky. I looked towards the sky and there were no streaks indicating a plane had flown over. That may sound odd, but that was one of the things I noticed the most. The absence of those airplanes was proof positive the world had changed that day. I’ve seen old westerns that had those jet streaks in the sky, belying the 19th century setting. And here we were in the 21st century without a plane in the sky. Another thing that sticks out in my mind was my sheer desperation to talk to my loved ones, especially my children. I knew where they were, but I had to hear their voices.
After the initial shock we had to go on with our lives. Like most people, I went back to work, went through the motions and noticed that everyone else was doing the same. We seemed to all be in shock and simply going through the motions of continuing with life as usual. Everything seemed to be in slow motion and every minute possible was spent watching and re-watching the horrors unfold trying to wrap our minds around what had happened to us.
In those early days after 9/11 we swore we’d never forget. We swore there would be a retribution. Innocent civilians had been targeted and murdered. Men, women and children were mercilessly slaughtered. People went about their business like every other day and were killed in the first salvo that we paid attention to of a war that had been waged against us years earlier.
We swore we’d never forget, but we have. We went to the mall and watched our portfolios get larger. We sent our Soldiers to fight and forgot about them too. So many just don’t want the ugliness of war and terrorism to intrude on their pretty lives.
As the anniversary of that day approaches, I find my thoughts returning to that day and all our nation lost and is continuing to lose. I pray to God that we will somehow get back to our roots and find our honor and resolve again. It seems to have gotten lost somewhere under towering heaps of affluence.
Gothguy says:
Beth,
The problem as I see it is that sadly, our society is geared towards the ‘here and now’, not so much the ‘remembering the past.’
Alan says:
Very, very well said, Beth.
Beth (Blue Star Chronicles) says:
I know Gothguy - its too bad cause our enemy is NOT geared that way :(
Thanks Alan :)