Today is the eighteenth anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and the crash of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania that did not reach its destination. An entire generation has been born since. They have no recollection of these events, nothing to reflect upon from first-hand experience, no memory of where they were or what they were doing.
The rest of us do remember. It was an incredibly difficult day. We were stunned and in shock…it didn’t make any sense. When the reality began to set in we were angry, fearful, anxious, and distressed. We felt broken and lost…everything was heavy and sad. The empty skies seemed eerie instead of beautiful. At the same time there was a palpable connection…a kind of sense of wholeness or oneness. I felt it…but it’s hard to explain.
Where would we go from here? What would we do? How would we respond? What would we change? Who would we become?
I wonder if the experience of 9/11 has made us better, stronger, more resilient. I wonder if it has brought us more together. I wonder if we are more kind and compassionate and caring. I wonder if we have grown in understanding and acceptance.
I wonder if we remember the final words of so many aboard those flights, the last most important thing…how much they loved their family…how important love is.
I wonder if we could say, to that entire generation who didn’t have the experience of 9/11, that we are stronger, more loving, compassionate, accepting and understanding today. I wonder.
With great tenderness in my heart,
Paula
