It's been 12 years since 9/11/2001.
People remember. I am seeing a lot of "where I was" posts on Facebook. I know people who paused to pray.
For some people, life became very different after 9/11 than it was before. Those who lost a loved one had their lives changed immediately. Those who went to war, or had a family member who did, also experienced change and loss.
I think, too, of the now 11 and 12 year olds who were born into grieving families because their fathers died in the attacks before they were born. They have never known a lack of mourning.
Some people changed their outlook because of 9/11.
Many people, though, go about their day to day lives as though the attacks never happened. Only when they have to wait in long airport security lines or hear a public announcement of an anniversary do they recall the events of that infamous day.
I do not know whether this is a good or bad thing. Perhaps it shows the resiliency of the American people and the human spirit. On the other hand perhaps it shows peoples' ability to shut out unpleasant things and act as though everything is fine.
I wrote a post titled "We are at War and Life Goes on as Usual" with some reflections on that.
I don't know the conclusion of all this. I struggle with how to respond to war and old attacks. I do know it is good to remember and to work for peace, even if I don't know how. Prayer is the place to begin, I guess, as always.
Remembering -- the attacks on the World Trade center, the Pentagon, Flight 93 and on 9/11/2012, American envoys in Benghazi.
God grant us peace.
People remember. I am seeing a lot of "where I was" posts on Facebook. I know people who paused to pray.
For some people, life became very different after 9/11 than it was before. Those who lost a loved one had their lives changed immediately. Those who went to war, or had a family member who did, also experienced change and loss.
I think, too, of the now 11 and 12 year olds who were born into grieving families because their fathers died in the attacks before they were born. They have never known a lack of mourning.
Some people changed their outlook because of 9/11.
Many people, though, go about their day to day lives as though the attacks never happened. Only when they have to wait in long airport security lines or hear a public announcement of an anniversary do they recall the events of that infamous day.
I do not know whether this is a good or bad thing. Perhaps it shows the resiliency of the American people and the human spirit. On the other hand perhaps it shows peoples' ability to shut out unpleasant things and act as though everything is fine.
I wrote a post titled "We are at War and Life Goes on as Usual" with some reflections on that.
I don't know the conclusion of all this. I struggle with how to respond to war and old attacks. I do know it is good to remember and to work for peace, even if I don't know how. Prayer is the place to begin, I guess, as always.
Remembering -- the attacks on the World Trade center, the Pentagon, Flight 93 and on 9/11/2012, American envoys in Benghazi.
God grant us peace.
You do raise some interesting ideas in this piece. There are arguments for keeping the incident fresh and constant in the memory. There are also arguments for moving on with life. Your post gave a lot to think about.
ReplyDeleteI remember I was just coming home from work in the late afternoon (it was around 5 pm or so in our parts of the world) when hubby told me Come and see this...I just got on screen the first tower going down. We were glued to the tv screen when the second one went down too. I shed tears that day for my friends in the States.
ReplyDeleteThanks. I was at work, at a school. Many parents came to take their children home.
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