Ten years ago, I sat on the living room floor in the three bedroom apartment that I'd shared with Sean and Kevin, watching the World Trade Center buildings burn and the Pentagon smolder......and I joked around, spouting conspiracy theories. But my actions were a cover.
My brother was working in DC and lived near the Pentagon, I couldn't reach him. And I was trying to remember if my dad's flight from Boston to LA was on the 10th or the 11th. And I couldn't reach him. So my first emotional response was to not deal with it.
The black smoke, the crumbling giants, the monstrous rolling gray sandstorm swallowing downtown Manhattan, were all so visually intense that, at first sight, it was easy to forget that there were thousands of human beings caught in it. Thousands of families lost loved ones that morning.
I was not going to post today, but I already received an email first thing this morning spouting political poison. The email was largely preaching to the choir and on any other day I'd probably agree with its sentiments, but I don't this morning.
The acrid political venom, the nonstop hate speech coming from every medium, and the monstrous rolling gray sandstorm of self-centered divisiveness swallowing the Left and Right make it easy to ignore how we're damaging our future. Whether you think al Qaeda or shadowy conspirators were behind the 9/11 events, you have to consider that the attackers got what they wanted in the end. We are weakened. This country is no longer united. We go out of our way to hurt and insult each other. We do it with flamboyance when cameras, microphones, and computers are around. And though, yes, I agree with one particular political side, I'm really tired of this.
It takes work to keep this American family together. Nothing good comes from it splitting itself up for selfish reasons. If we're all walking around as nothing but American Individuals then we are lazily shirking our responsibilities to each other. We all need to be healthy, financially stable, educated, and loved.
I am thankful that my brother and father got to their homes safely ten years ago. And I am thankful for all of the phone calls that came pouring in that day. I feel blessed by the good news and support. Thousands of others received the opposite and there's nothing that they can do to get back what and who they've lost. So, no matter how you view this tenth anniversary -- the start of our fear-based living or a tragedy that killed members of our American Family -- please remember it by being unafraid, selfless, and loving. And see how much of that you can take with you into the future.
