September 11, 2001 is permanently etched in my mind. I was eating breakfast at a local restaurant when the horror started. I came home and just happened to turn on the television and saw what was happening. I cannot imagine the terror of the passengers as they saw the planes fast approaching the Towers, or as they flew low into the Pentagon and certainly not the brave attempt of the passengers in the plane that crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. That plane's flight path would have passed over close to our home. I can't forget the pictures of the people forced to jump from the towering infernos.
The attack was worse than Pearl Harbor. The Japanese Ambassador was in Washington for peace talks on December 7, 1941. Japan had attempted to notify the United States of the impending attack immediately before it occurred to assuage the dishonor of a sneak attack. The message did not arrive in time anyway. The immediate aftermath of both attacks were similar as the American Government and its people responded with determination.
I remember the scene of President Bush addressing the Congress. We were truly united as a nation. It did not last long, because we are humans. We live in the culture as fish live in water. An American Creed had united us for over 200 years, a creed that saw us as a "special people," brought from all quarters of the earth to a land that had this amazing Constitutional Republic government. We had our colonial beginnings, our Founding Fathers, numerous names of heroes of war, government, invention and sacrifice. And we had one God. Our schools reminded us of these things. If it was not our fathers who went off to war to protect our freedoms, it was our grandfathers.
My travels have taken me to Europe, Asia and South America and I was always proud to be an American. The Stars and Stripes is a beautiful flag. When I was a youth, television would stop broadcasting about 1 A.M and it would sign off with the flag flying as the National Anthem played. I remember watching the sign off with the comfort of thinking that my country was strong. I often visit Civil War battlefields. I remember hundreds of long lines of white crosses in a cemetery in Belgium, Americans who gave everything to stop the evil of that day. There will never be a Ho Chi Minh City to me. It will always be Saigon and I take special pride in calling the Vietnamese that immigrated here, fellow Americans, fellow citizens.
The image of Iraqis raising a finger purple with the ink of voting is also etched in my mind. Our soldiers (a term for all of our military) have served us bravely and superbly. If I were in the presence of George W. Bush today, there would be no remembrance of economic decisions nor any other decisions he made that I disagreed with. I would stand at attention in respect for what he endured and for what he did in defending us. As a people, we have slipped badly. We no longer realize what we had or what we are losing. The American Creed is waning fast, as is E Pluribus Unun (Out of Many One) in favor of E Unum Pluribus. We are a nation of groups wrestling for our own group rights. God already knows what is in store for America but His design, in a very mysterious way, brings us into the equation through prayer. Why would we pray for a need that we do not know exists? Why would we humble ourselves if we do not see the catastrophe our pride is delivering.
The attack was worse than Pearl Harbor. The Japanese Ambassador was in Washington for peace talks on December 7, 1941. Japan had attempted to notify the United States of the impending attack immediately before it occurred to assuage the dishonor of a sneak attack. The message did not arrive in time anyway. The immediate aftermath of both attacks were similar as the American Government and its people responded with determination.
I remember the scene of President Bush addressing the Congress. We were truly united as a nation. It did not last long, because we are humans. We live in the culture as fish live in water. An American Creed had united us for over 200 years, a creed that saw us as a "special people," brought from all quarters of the earth to a land that had this amazing Constitutional Republic government. We had our colonial beginnings, our Founding Fathers, numerous names of heroes of war, government, invention and sacrifice. And we had one God. Our schools reminded us of these things. If it was not our fathers who went off to war to protect our freedoms, it was our grandfathers.
My travels have taken me to Europe, Asia and South America and I was always proud to be an American. The Stars and Stripes is a beautiful flag. When I was a youth, television would stop broadcasting about 1 A.M and it would sign off with the flag flying as the National Anthem played. I remember watching the sign off with the comfort of thinking that my country was strong. I often visit Civil War battlefields. I remember hundreds of long lines of white crosses in a cemetery in Belgium, Americans who gave everything to stop the evil of that day. There will never be a Ho Chi Minh City to me. It will always be Saigon and I take special pride in calling the Vietnamese that immigrated here, fellow Americans, fellow citizens.
The image of Iraqis raising a finger purple with the ink of voting is also etched in my mind. Our soldiers (a term for all of our military) have served us bravely and superbly. If I were in the presence of George W. Bush today, there would be no remembrance of economic decisions nor any other decisions he made that I disagreed with. I would stand at attention in respect for what he endured and for what he did in defending us. As a people, we have slipped badly. We no longer realize what we had or what we are losing. The American Creed is waning fast, as is E Pluribus Unun (Out of Many One) in favor of E Unum Pluribus. We are a nation of groups wrestling for our own group rights. God already knows what is in store for America but His design, in a very mysterious way, brings us into the equation through prayer. Why would we pray for a need that we do not know exists? Why would we humble ourselves if we do not see the catastrophe our pride is delivering.
