Remembering the lessons of Sept. 11

I picked up the small American flag as it lay on the ground at UNR today and dusted off the dirt. At the end of a busy day, it was a poignant time of reflection. Seven years ago I was sitting on the step in our family room trying to make sense of it all. Now where was I? Where are we?

Throughout the day, MSNBC was playing stark footage taken moments after the second of the twin towers collapsed in New York. Firefighters, family and friends were in the middle of dust-strewn streets, just staring. As I write this, it is hard not to just stop and freeze in amazement.

The United States of America changed drastically on Sept. 11, 2001. Two planes crushed their enormous weight into two of the largest centers of commerce in the United States. Something that represented America was spewing smoke into the blue sky. Inside, someone with a family was now dead. Someone who had chased a professional dream had been halted by mindless fanaticism. Multiply that sense by thousands and immerse it in a city full of people now fearing for their lives and you may grasp a percentage of what really happened that day.
A couple years ago I had the opportunity to visit New York City. The energy and culture and lights and feeling in that city were awesome. But no feeling before or after that trip has compared to the way I felt staring into the pit that was ground zero. In the middle of the city, there was silence. The only sound as I looked on was a homeless man playing Amazing Grace on a flute. I could feel the spirits of those who lived and worked and loved there. They were there. Across the street there is a church that has become a memorial to the events of 9/11. There were thank you notes for the firefighters. There were signs asking for information on missing loved ones. There was quiet there too.

Later that week my friend Ashley and I were walking down the street with her sister Jody. As we looked up at the clear blue sky, Jody said that it was still odd for her to hear an airplane fly overhead. There was a long time when the skies were quiet too. To this day, she feels funny when she sees an airplane and she cannot talk about the day without choking up. We all changed that day.
There is no simple way to communicate the gravity of that event. On Sept. 11, 2002, I was sitting with Ford. He was one at the time, and all I could think was that he will never know what this day really means. How will his generation learn the true meaning of heroism, patriotism and unity? Hopefully they will not have to face tragedy of their own.
His world is a different place seven years later. Where are we now? We are not staring in disbelief anymore. We have retaliated. We have declared war on terrorism. But do we remember what we are really fighting? We are not fighting to kill someone or something. Seven years later, our battle is to keep something alive – patriotism and heroism. Seven years later we are still dusting off our flags, waving them in the air proudly and saying “I am an American. I am willing to be a hero if my country needs it.” And we need it.