I started this post with talking about where I was September 11, 2001, feelings I experienced and the reactions around me. After I finished, I realized not only was it long, but it was also probably not a whole lot different than others' experiences- so I started over.
“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall”
- Confucius
10 years ago, America collectively "fell"- physically, emotionally and spiritually. Many of us caught our first glimpse at real evil in our world!
Thankfully, in the same terrible event, we were able to see the good in mankind as well. We saw heroes risk everything to save people they never knew. I think their unbelievable acts of kindness started the healing process almost immediately.
As a country, we are now more resilient. We are more patriotic. We are more grateful for the freedoms that we have.
We fell hard, but we rose so much stronger!
"After all that has just passed, all the lives taken and all the possibilities and hopes that died with them, it is natural to wonder if America's future is one of fear.
... I know there are struggles ahead and dangers to face. But this country will define our times, not be defined by them.
As long as the United States of America is determined and strong, this will not be an age of terror. This will be an age of liberty here and across the world.
... We have suffered great loss. And in our grief and anger we have found our mission and our moment.
...Our nation, this generation, will lift the dark threat of violence from our people and our future. We will rally the world to this cause by our efforts, by our courage. We will not tire, we will not falter and we will not fail.
Each of us will remember what happened that day and to whom it happened. We will remember the moment the news came, where we were and what we were doing.
...I will not forget the wound to our country and those who inflicted it. I will not yield, I will not rest, I will not relent in waging this struggle for freedom and security for the American people. The course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain. Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know that God is not neutral between them."
George W. Bush
*photos taken in April 2007 at Ground Zero*
