ACE #277: September 11, 2001...On That Day

Now, it's been 20 years. Still a tragedy that today's teenagers know little about. They weren't even born yet. But for those of us who lived through it, we will never forget that horrific day. 

Updated September 11, 2021

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That day, I was standing in my boss’s office.  Someone ran in the room and said to hurry up and turn on the television.  I could not really grasp what was actually happening.  I saw fire and smoke coming from one of the Twin Towers.  And just in the blink of an eye, the second tower was struck by a plane.  I still could not believe my eyes.  I could not really collect myself.  But…it was real.  It wasn't special effects.  It wasn’t a movie.  It wasn’t a cruel joke.  It was a real, live, terrorist attack on US soil.  I stood there, what seemed like an eternity, just staring at the television. I did not hear one thing my boss said after that.  I thought to myself, “Is this really happening?”  I had a moment of gratitude even as my heart ached – I’d just returned from a summer-long fellowship in Washington, D.C. a few days before. I walked by one of the The Pentagon regional offices and through the National Mall everyday that summer to get to my job assignment.  It’s the moment you say to yourself, “It could have been me.” Then I went into a silent prayer for the ones who were directly in the middle of the chaos. 

September 11, 2001 was one of the most horrific tragedies in the history of the United States of America.  Wikipedia defines it as:

A series of four coordinated terrorist attacks launched by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda upon the United States in New York City and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area on Tuesday, September 11, 2001.  The attacks killed almost 3,000 people and caused at least $10 billion in property and infrastructure damage.

So much more than buildings were damaged on that day.  Many have asked the question, “Where was God in all of this?”  And, thirteen years later, I can still say that I saw God that day – in the midst of the tragedy. That day, our hearts were broken, but we stood together as “one nation” regardless of race, ethnicity, creed, religious beliefs, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, age, political beliefs, viewpoints, physical abilities, experiences, and whatever else that divides us. 

I don’t think I’ve ever felt more “American” than on that day – through the tears, through the hurt, through the anger, but also through the love, care, and concern I saw complete strangers show to each other.

Let us never forget the lives that were lost, the lives that were forever changed, or the nation that stood in unity…on that day.

Photo by Andrea Booher/ FEMA News Photo

I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, 

and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, 

with liberty and justice for all.

Wikipedia

I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; 

turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.