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Everybody with a little age on them remembers September 11, 2001. It is etched in our memories and should be forever. It is a part of our history like the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor or the day Oswald shot JFK. You will always be able to remember what you were doing when you first heard the news.
I remember 9/11 very well. It started like any other day. Then I heard the news of a plane hitting one of the Twin Towers. I turned on the television. I watched the smoke rolling from the top of the building and was dumb-struck as I saw a second plane hit the other building, the explosion going through out the majestic giant. I realized that, while the first collision may have been an accident, the second could only be an attack. I thought of the people trapped in the upper stories of those buildings. I remember seeing the brave men and women of the NYPD and FDNY running toward the buildings, even as everyone else was running away from them. I felt a deep loss as the buildings fell, one after the other, not only for the symbols that were the Twin Towers, but mostly for the patriots that lost their lives in an effort to save so many others, snuffed out in an attack on America.
I remember seeing the damage to the Pentagon caused by another hijacked plane that flew into it. Then I heard the reports of another plane, heading for Washinton, DC, and how a group of brave passengers, having themselves heard of the previous travesties, decided to try to take back control of their plane from the hijackers with a cry of "Let's roll". While it cost them their lives in Shanksville, Pa., their bravery saved many others.
The days following 9/11, I saw the destruction, but what stands out in my mind were the examples of patriotism and the stories of the heroism of that day. The terrorists of Al Qaeda could kill our citizens and destroy our buildings, but they could not destroy our spirit.
All this gave rise to Patriot Day, a day of rememberence, a day to fly the flag at half staff in memory of those brave souls who lost their lives.
It has been ten years since that day. It hasn't been so long ago that the visions have faded. It has been long enough ago that the next generation may not know what happened. They don't know what Patriot Day stands for.
Unfortunately, there is a concerted effort to blunt the importance of that day in that generation, as well as our own. This year, in the shadow of where the Twin Towers stood, there will be ceremonies. There's no room for the people of the NYPD or FDNY there. There's no room for prayer. An edict of the Obama administration is to not point fingers at Al Qaeda (although all they themselves do is point fingers at everyone and everything for anything that goes wrong). In fact, don't mention Al Qaeda at all. President Obama wants this to be a service day.
We need to teach our children before others indoctrinate them. On September 11, 2001, ten years ago, America was attacked by the Muslim extremists of Al Qaeda, costing us the lives of many great patriots who will be missed and remembered forever. Teach them not all Muslims are bad, but those of Al Qaeda are, as well as those that follow their beliefs. Teach them there is always a place for prayer, and for the 14% of Americans who find it offensive, stay at home and may God have mercy on you. Tell them that service to others is a great cause, but why would you want to limit it to just one day. Why not do service everyday.
Most importantly, show your children the importance of the day by going up to a police officer, a fireman, an EMT or a serviceperson and thank them for their service. Honoring the Patriots is what the day is about.
