I've spent today, 9/11/10, at work. We started the day with a moment of silence at roll call, a moment to remember our Brothers lost on that horrible day, and in the 3,827 days since. The rest of the day was a normal shift, waiting for the call that never comes. The other stations in our department are busy working a brush fire today, caused by tracer ammunition from Army helicopters doing training. Pretty routine for them/us. I can smell the smoke as I sit here in my dorm room, wondering if I'll have to assist them tonight. If so, fine; if not, even better. I left wildland firefighting behind on the West coast when I joined the military, and I'm happy not to do it again. Even if New Jersey does do it completely different...
The day's activities included lots of Twitter updates and "RT"s, most related to 9/11. Until I found Michael Morse's post on Rescuing Providence. As I read his words, I thought about how I felt then and now. I was drawn to responding with a comment of my own, which prompted me to end up here, writing about 9/11. I started off today thinking I would do something meaningful to honor the fallen: I would tweet the names of all 343 Firemen lost in the Twin Towers, three at a time, with the appropriate hashtags. Cool idea, I thought. Didn't happen. Thinking about each name reminded me that there's a family behind it, missing a loved one, today more than on other days. There's friends and coworkers missing the smile, the wit, the personal quirks that made every one of the victims an individual. And it struck me- how can we remember the firefighters who so heroically climbed the stairs, who so valiantly carried on their job knowing the magnitude of what lay ahead, without remembering all of the other victims?
Every person that died on 9/11 has a name, has a face, has a story. Every rescuer and worker that's died since 9/11/01 after dedicating themselves on "The Pile", every one that's dying as I write this, deserves to be remembered and honored. Their families deserve that, too. We, as a Nation, have moved on. Fewer and fewer people come to 9/11 remembrance events, or pause for more than a moment to recall that fateful day. We are taken up with worries like the economy, the lingering war on terrorism, politics and our personal lives, and so much more. I thought, until very recently, that doing so was disrespectful to those we've lost. That not paying homage to them the entire day was to forget their memories. In fact, I think it's just the opposite. By carrying on, continuing with life, we are telling them that we have not succumbed to the terrorists who murdered them; we are celebrating the very thing that the villains behind this tragic day tried to end. We are victorious because we carry on, because we have not given in.
As a Nation, we are moving from mourning to recovery. This is the end of our emotional winter, the dawning of spring with a promise of a bright and joyful summer. Let us shed the misery of the past, and instead take up celebration for those who have gone before. Let us revel in their lives, hold them high in our memories for all the good times and fun we had before they left us. No more should we cry, mourn their passing, weep for them; they would not want it. The time has come for us to renew our national pride and vigor, to step forward into the light of day and proclaim, "We Americans are not beaten, we are free and proud" for all the world to hear. Let us cast off the hatred and distrust we've sown by our misery, embrace our neighbor, and make the world jealous of our love instead of our belongings. It's time to move on, to make a meaningful tribute to our dead.
In loving remembrance, stay safe, take care of each other, and take care of the job.
In that order.
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