Never Forget...Never EVER Forget

This was the vow we made as a country 20 years ago today. Where were you? What were you doing when those planes struck the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and the ground in Shanksville (likely intended for the Capitol or the White House)? What does it mean to never forget and how can we ensure we live up to that vow? I think for me, writing this now is a small way to fulfill that ongoing commitment and to take the time to think back on that day and what it has meant in two decades since.

Like the generations before us that witnessed such horrible days as Pearl Harbor or the assassination of JFK, most people who were old enough to understand the magnitude of the largest attack on US soil remember exactly that fateful moment of discovery. I will certainly never forget mine. With a face covered in shaving cream, I was about 1/3 of the way done shaving, as I got ready for work that day. My good friend and roommate began yelling "oh my God!" from his room where he routinely had the Today Show playing on the TV each morning. He explained that a plane had flown into one of the World Trade Center towers. I ran into the room and we, like most of America, listened to speculation and presumed it was a small plane of some sort, except it was a cloudless day - how could that even happen accidentally? It was then that we saw the second plane hit the south tower. It was shocking, bewildering, and horrifying. As the morning progressed and I left for work, the chaos continued to unfold - a plane had flown into the Pentagon and then another crashing in a field in Pennsylvania.

I remember asking myself, friends and coworkers, how could those people above the fire line in the towers get out? Is there at least one stairwell that they can get to and safely climb down? Can they get to the roof and maybe be evacuated via helicopter rescue? How will they extinguish that fire so high up in the building? Presumably, there's an emergency sprinkler system - does it even work at this point? Can it be stopped at all? The answers to those questions were tragically revealed a short time later when we witnessed reports and video of people jumping out of the windows. With no options for escape, they chose to jump from 90+ stories and take their own lives, rather than burn to death in those towers. And then we saw something that I never thought even possible at the time, each tower simply collapsing onto itself, disappearing from the skyline, in a matter of seconds. It was gut wrenching and heart-breaking to watch.

What else do I remember...?

The uncertainty of not knowing what could be coming next. The Golden Gate Bridge, the Sears Tower in Chicago? What, where and when would be the next blow? I remember the eery silence of a sky with no commercial air traffic - no air traffic whatsoever- for days, apart from the occasional roar of fighter jets screaming overhead. I remember wondering if anyone could possibly survive the collapse of those buildings - and hoping and praying that the massive recovery effort would reveal a miracle over the coming days. I remember the stories being revealed of the phone messages and last moments of Flight 93 - as they had heard what happened in NY & DC and chose to not let their plane be used as a missile but rather to fight back, forcing it to crash into the earth instead of another building and taking more lives. I remember the videos and photos of seemingly endless pictures posted near ground zero by friends and family searching for any news on the condition and whereabouts of missing loved ones.

I remember many things from that day, and the days that followed, and I hope I never do forget them. However, I think most importantly, I choose to never forget the following:

1) The act itself and the gut wrenching images of the murder of nearly 3,000 innocent souls at the hands of pure evil.

2) The bravery, service, and sacrifice of all the police officers, firemen(and women), EMTs, Port Authority and other first responders in NY and elsewhere. Those who ran into danger without hesitation to help and to save the lives of others - even while knowing that in the case of the twin towers, it almost certainly would mean their own deaths.

3) The countless stories of everyday people across the country helping those directly (and indirectly) impacted by that tragedy in innumerable ways.

4) All of the military personnel that took on the righteous mission to go search out and serve justice on those who perpetrated the attacks of that terrible day, and who sacrificed so much, if not everything, to keep us Safe and Free here at home for the next 20 years.

5) The overwhelming sense of Patriotism and Unity that blossomed across our country as it simply didn't matter how opinions differed or what your political leanings were. The pride of waving an American flag, expressing patriotism, and seeking God's grace and blessing for our country was everywhere. What mattered was that we were ALL Americans and this was an attack on us as Americans and our way of life - and we were going to be dammed if we were going to let those evil forces break our spirit and what we stand for or allow there to be additional harm inflicted on our fellow Americans.

Never forget...Never EVER forget!