In Remembrance - September 11, 2010

September 11, 2010

In Remembrance

Where have the years gone? It hardly seems possible that nine years have passed

since the early morning hours when I woke up to get ready for work and watched the

news of the first airliner crashing into the World Trade Center in New York City. Then,

as I watched, stunned, a second plane, hit the second of the Twin Towers, killing all on

board the airliner and many of the workers in the building. It took two hours for both

buildings to fall, destroying several other buildings. Counting the other two airliners,

the deaths at the Pentagon, and the 19 highjackers, the death toll rose to almost three

thousand. The majority of the victims were civilians and came from seventy different

countries.

A total of 411 first responders died in their efforts to rescue victims and to fight the

fires resulting from the attack.

According to Wikipedia, the U. S. government determined that al-Qaeda, headed by

Osama bin Laden, bore responsibility for the attacks, with the FBI stating "evidence

linking al-Qaeda and bin Laden to the attacks of September 11 is clear and irrefutable."

There are hundreds of articles that have been written about the aftermath and sequelae of

the 9-11 attacks on the Twin Towers. In my lifetime, I don't think any single event has

had such a profound effect on me. It has certainly had a major impact on our lives, on our

sense of freedom, on the way we travel, and has made us feel vulnerable in our world.

Our men and women serving in our Armed Forces have been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan

to try to make our country safe and to keep another 9-11 from taking place on American

soil.

On September 11, 2002, I wrote a poem called, "In Remembrance." Here it is.


In Remembrance


 A year ago, this day began,
Like any other day,
With people racing off to work,
And kids sent out to play.


Students headed off to school,
Cars stalled in long commutes,
Early morning flights took off,
Men donned their business suits.


In the vilest act of hatred,
Terrorism reared its head,
Changing the lives of Americans,
Leaving countless people dead.

The world watched in amazement,
As American symbols fell,
With thousands of innocent people,
Plunged into living hell.


On that fateful day, we felt,
Unity and a sense of pride,
As heroes combed the ashes,
All differences put aside.


We bonded as a nation,
And showed how much we care,
Fighting threats of terrorists,
On our soil - and everywhere.


We will never be the same again,
But our healing has begun,
As America remembers this saddest day,
God bless us every one.


Carmen Henesy 9-11-2002


Copyright © 2002 Carmen Henesy.
All Rights Reserved.


This was written on the first anniversary of the horrible events of September 11, 2001