We normally do not get the morning paper during the week. We did September 12. There were the most amazing photos in our edition of the Morning Call. Some appropriate, some made my stomach churn. Photos of a firefighter screaming in pain after being pulled from the rubble, a man falling headfirst off the top of the first WTC building to be hit, photos of Palestinian children cheering in the streets, photos of burning buildings, scenes from the plane crash in the field of western PA, a hole in the middle of the Pentagon. Gut wrenching, horrific, sad.
My husband Eric and I watched together as the reports of NYC Fire Chief and Deputy Fire Chief being feared dead and the nearly 300 other firefighters who are missing started rolling into national news sources. I have been deeply disturbed by this whole tragic chain of events. ENTIRE FIRE COMPANIES are missing in NY. Unthinkable. My husband is a member of the elite brotherhood we all like to call FIREFIGHTERS. Although he is merely a volunteer firefighter, he belongs to this brotherhood nonetheless. I have racked my brain since this tragedy occurred to try to figure out what could have been done differently to ensure more lives saved than lost in our firefighting community. My answers have always been the same. NOTHING. Nothing could have been done differently, for when a firefighter happens on the scene, instinct kicks in and the only thing in the mind of one of these elite people is SAVING LIVES. Those firefighters did what they have been trained to do, they climbed the stairs, where many people were fleeing downward, in order to save lives. What a remarkable characteristic of a hero. They are all heroes. Say an extra prayer for the firefighters and more so, their families. The loss we are feeling in the firefighting community is just very heart wrenching. As hard as it is to imagine the senseless loss of a mother, father, grandfather, brother, cousin, friend….to me, it is even harder to imagine the massive loss the firefighting community is feeling as a result of this inexplicable act. My heart goes out to the firefighting community for the loss, so severe, they suffered. It is so incomprehensible. People who serve their communities, whose main objectives it is to SAVE lives, in the end lose their own. Yes, it is their job to serve and protect, but is this the thanks they get? This is not the way they should be repaid for their acts of bravery. Each and every account of firefighters heading into the buildings speaks of the urgency to save lives, rescue those who could be rescued, and try to save those who seemed un-savable. In the end, it was their lives they spent in efforts to save others. FIREFIGHTERS = HEROES. Let them forever be known as such. Until September 11, 2001, children's heroes wore baseball, football, basketball uniforms, but in light of the recent tragedy, heroes today wear a new uniform...a uniform of distinction....the uniform of a fire company, police unit, ambulance station. How sad that for even one, brief moment in time, that thought has been lost. These firefighters (and police officers) do not get paid enough for what they do, and many VOLUNTEER to do it, yet they are called Kooks, HoseHeads, etc. How rotten when you think about what they risk doing what they do best. Don't wait for another tragedy to write your local firestation, whether it be volunteer or paid, and TELL THEM YOU APPRECIATE THEM. It will mean a world to them.
We watched the reports of the CNN reporter who phoned her husband in the last moments of her life to tell him she was on a hijacked plane and then....GONE. The reports of a man on the 107 floor of the WTC who phoned his wife to tell her that he was trapped and that he loved her and there was no way he was getting out. The man on the flight that crashed in western PA who called his wife to tell her he loved her and hoped she would have a great life with their baby girl before crashing to the ground.
What is our world coming to? When does the destruction and total disregard for life stop? I know many of us are still in a state of disbelief. The day that turned our world upside down is now into its second day and still we sit, fixated on our TVs, radios, the Internet…..waiting. Waiting for word that more survivors are found, keeping hope alive that the numbers of the lost will not surmount the numbers they predict. Yet, the loss of lives, as the totals are starting to roll in, is simply incomprehensible. The people who are responsible for this cowardly act wanted to bring America down. They wanted to see our tears, they wanted to see destruction. They wanted us to fall, never to rise again. But we are better than that. Bring them on. Let them see us cry tears of sorrow and let them see us fall on our knees and pray. Let them also see the American people rally around one another in this time of need, stand beside one another as we rise up, rebuild, and repay those who deserve it. They may have seen our buildings crumble, crash, and burn, but that was only our buildings. The spirit of the American people, and those who are rallying behind us is stronger than any terrorist (or terrorist group) because this time it not only touched those of us who live in the USA, this cowardly act touched many people worldwide. Not just individual people, either, but businesses, governments, religious affiliations, EVERYONE.
It is a worrisome time when you can't even feel safe for your loved ones, but in the words of Anne Frank, in the midst of her terror and hope for peace in her country, "I simply can't build my hopes on a foundation of confusion, misery and death ... I think… peace and tranquillity will return again." And so, I will not allow this to bring me down. I will only hope and pray that peace and tranquility will return, one day soon, to our country.
To my little brother in the USAF ~ Stay safe, buddy. I love you and I am so proud of you. Make us all proud. You are one in a million and for your bravery in wanting to defend this wonderful country of ours, you will always be my special hero. STAY SAFE.
To my friends ~ This is OUR COUNTRY. We can not let anyone take from us those freedoms we value as Americans. We must never forget those people who perished senselessly on September 11, 2001. For them, we must pray for justice and for peace. This attack can not diminish the pride we feel for our country, the United States of America.
To Government Officials ~ Please, please, please sirs and madams. Do not let these people die in vain. Search until you find those people responsible for this horrific act and bring them to justice, whatever that may be. It is to you, we give our trust that you will do the right thing.
To God, our Heavenly Father ~ Dear God, please embrace those souls who have come to live with You as a result of this national tragedy. Please hear all our prayers and allow us to have faith that You will guide us to an understanding of what has happened in our country this week. Help us to help one another through the rough times ahead. Help us to better embrace those affected by the malicious acts that dampened our spirits and brought gray skies to an otherwise beautiful day. We ask all this in Your name, Amen. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
The photos on this page have been compiled from various sources on the internet. Photos of the firefighters on the scene were taken from AP sources, while the graphic of the crying eagle is still copyright unknown. If you know who created this gorgeous graphic, please email me! Thanks!
