America is a tune. It must be sung together. ~Gerald Stanley Lee Ah, yes, that song in our hearts. Who can forget the aftermath of 9/11? I had already arrived at school that morning as news of the terrorist attacks became apparent. I remember what I wore...whose faces I first saw when I learned the truth. Surely, surely, this was a scene from a poorly cast science fiction movie. This is America! We do not endure this type of living nightmare! And then, stepping into the teachers' lounge, I watched the second plane forever become meshed with the World Trade Center...and I cried.
The stern hand of fate has scourged us to an elevation where we can see the great everlasting things that matter for a nation; the great peaks of honour we had forgotten - duty and patriotism, clad in glittering white; the great pinnacle of sacrifice pointing like a rugged finger to heaven.
~David Lloyd George
~David Lloyd George
I remember the desperate need to hug my children that day, to hear the voices of those I loved. I did not hesitate to say the words 'I love you' because I knew, more than ever before, that tomorrow is elusive. Suffering breaks our world. Like a tree struck by lightening—splintered, shaken, denuded—our world is broken by suffering, and we will never be the same again. ~Nathan Kollar
~President George W. Bush, December 11, 2001
I knew then that the world must be coming to an end...and it did. The world as I had known it ceased to exist. I suppose I felt a bit like my grandparents must have felt on the day Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941. There is a nakedness that comes with the loss of security, that farewell to peace of mind. Today, my students have never known an existence without the stain of the horrors of 9/11. What I hope they see in those of us who knew America "before" is this:
Patriotism... is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.
~Adlai Stevenson
~Adlai Stevenson
And this:
A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle; and patriotism is loyalty to that principle. ~George William Curtis
Today I am reminded of the thousands of victims who lost their lives on that fateful day. There are countless others, too, who paid the ultimate sacrifice in the days afterwards. And how many, many more have hearts with bruises that will never fade?
her·o·ism [ hérrō ìzzəm ] n.
1. great courage: remarkable physical or moral courage
2. heroic conduct or behavior
“In the name of the best within you, do not sacrifice this world to those who are its worst. In the name of the values that keep you alive, do not let your vision of man be distorted by the ugly, the cowardly, the mindless in those who have never achieved his title. Do not lose your knowledge that man's proper estate is an upright posture, an intransigent mind and a step that travels unlimited roads. Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desired can be won, it exists, it is real, it is possible, it's yours.” ~Ayn Rand
Heroes among us. The soldier, the sacrifice. The patriot. Heroism is a way of life for most Americans. It manifests itself in our greatest deeds, but also in our smallest actions. Is it not courageous to love your neighbor as yourself? To set forth an example of patience, understanding, even kindness? Each man must for himself alone decide what is right and what is wrong, which course is patriotic and which isn't. You cannot shirk this and be a man. To decide against your conviction is to be an unqualified and excusable traitor, both to yourself and to your country, let men label you as they may. ~Mark Twain
I've wondered about the life stories of those who perished in the attacks. It's been years since I've read much about them. My curiosity got the best of me and I sought names similar to my own. I am humbled.
A memorial note regarding the life of Stephanie V. Irby, 38, who died at the World Trade Center:
Tonight we met a very special puppy walking in our neighborhood. When we stopped to talk to the owner, we found out that the dog's name was Irby, named after a victim of the World Trade Center tragedy. [Stephanie was apparently a dog breeder.] This puppy is going to grow up to be a bomb sniffing dog to keep us all safe. Being a huge dog "family" we just thought we were meeting a puppy. Little did we know we were meeting a future hero. God bless to all the people that loved Stephanie.
And another:
You are often thought of. We are missing you singing on the choir and praise team. You now belong to that heavenly choir. Sing on, sing on. We will join you one day soon.
A memorial note regarding the life of Stacey L. Sanders, 25, who also died at the World Trade Center:
I've tried to forget her and all of the things that we've done, but as long as there are memories I'll never hang up my gun .
I found no memorial notes regarding Wanda Anita Green, 49, of New Jersey...yet I know there are those who mourn her loss. As a crew member of Flight 93, she died in a Pennsylvania field on a plane rerouted for our capital city. She was part of the esteemed group who participated in the passenger revolt, following the directive, "Let's roll."
Three women...countless others. Who were they, really? Who would they be today? It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. ~Abraham Lincoln, The Gettysburg Address
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