9/11 Never Forget

Our memorials for the 10-year anniversary of 9/11 are about the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, the field in Pennsylvania.

And they are about the senseless deaths of friends and family, the courage and fortitude of FDNY firefighters, volunteer rescue workers and devoted search and rescue dogs and they are about the people who lost their loved ones on that mind-and-soul-numbing day.

The mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, has banned clergy and prayer from the memorial event at Ground Zero tomorrow. He has also basically “disinvited” the First Responders because there is “not enough room” for them. And he has also “suggested” that Americans “get past” using the words Ground Zero to describe the site of the horrific terrorist attack.

I do not understand why the memorial event for the 10th anniversary of 9/11 has become, in effect, the one-man-show of Michael Bloomberg.

I don’t get it because 9/11 is about every single American citizen in the United States.

We all remember where we were or what we were doing when someone called and told us to “turn on the TV.” (We remember WHO it was who called as well….). Those were the only words possible at that time…”turn on the TV”…because there were no other words to describe the unfamiliar and surreal events that happened that day.

I was at home that day with my cats Poquita and Jack when I got the call at around 1pm. I turned on the television and watched, in shock, as the planes flew into the buildings and as the towers collapsed over and over again on the cycle of videos played on the news station.

No matter how many times the film was shown, it was all still unbelievable.

I personally did not know anyone who perished that day, but as the days and weeks passed, I heard stories from people who knew people or knew of someone who lost someone or who had died. For instance, the family doctor’s daughter-in-law was on one of the planes.

That is why 9/11 is about ALL of us. It’s about “E Pluribus Unum” — out of the many states, one united country. We the People are ALL the family and friends who lost loved ones on that day.

9/11 is not just about terrorist attacks in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington DC. It is about terrorist attacks on all 50 states. We are all in this together.

So even though Bloomberg is planning on a godless moment of silence on Sunday, 9/11/11, we all know that we will each individually and collectively be praying, remembering and crying out loud or in our hearts.

This is still the greatest FREE country in the world. Ground Zero will always be Ground Zero. FDNY firefighters, police officers and volunteers will always be heroes. Those of us who choose to will always be able to pray.

And we will ALWAYS remember 9/11.

©September 10, 2011 by Phyllis J. Hanniver

Read about Bloomberg’s shenanigans here:
http://blog.beliefnet.com/news/2011/09/no-thanks-to-god-or-first-responders-at-mayors-secular-911-ceremonies.php