The Day The World Changed

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="158" caption="Image by Bill Strong via Flickr"][/caption]

September 11, 2001. I remember.

A beautiful Tuesday morning

Normal.

I drove to work

where I taught elementary school

children.

My young son was with me.

Only an hour and and a half into the school day

everything changed. I remember.

A third grade teacher ran to the door of my room

and said, "Quick turn on your TV"

I instead walked to the office and there I saw the first

tower in flames.

I was watching when the second tower was hit.

My heart stopped. I remember.

The rest of the day, I was numb.

My students didn't fully understand

We just kept going.

Trying to be normal

Through the tears.

At the time this happened I, myself, had been widowed for 10 months. I was already dealing with death in my own life when this horrible thing happened. I remember thinking in the school office, as I watched the tragedy unfold...this can't be real. It can't be happening. Is the world coming to an end? I tried to keep my emotions under control so I didn't scare my students...but, they knew something was wrong. Terribly wrong. One of my 2nd grade students prayed in the classroom. And I didn't stop her....because we all knew.... That God heard our pain that fateful day in early September.

Though I didn't know the people who lost their lives, personally...I will not forget them. The people at work in the towers, the people on the flights, the police and firemen......and those they left behind.

I remember.

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Morally Wrong

FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT ARE NOT INTERESTED IN POLITICAL OR CURRENT EVENT OPINIONS.....DON'T READ THIS. JUST GIVING YOU A HEADS UP.

I watched the national news today(and have been following) about the desire of some to build a mosque at the ground zero site..... How the mosque should be there because of religious freedom. If the muslim community in New York were truly interested about compassion, or empathy then they would NOT build there. I don't care if they have the RIGHT to do it.....morally they should decline from building a mosque where the Twin Towers once stood. People can tout all they want that Islam is a religion of peace, which after reading about Christians that are martyred in countries all over the world under militant Islamic rule, I find it hard to believe that Islam is anything but a facade of peace. Not true peace, and certainly not peace to those that do not follow Allah. They are considered infidels. Interesting.

Whether or not the muslim community wishes to acknowledge that ALL the hijackers on those doomed flights were muslim, is really beside the point. It is not healing to those of us that witnessed the deaths of fellow American's....spouses, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, friends.....that were senselessly murdered that fateful day. A day that will live in the hearts of millions of Americans. A mosque sitting on that site is nothing more than spitting in the faces of those that remember.

Those that are pushing for this mosque...what is the real reason? Why can't you build down the street? Why at that particular spot? What is your point? I think the reasoning goes much deeper than anyone wants to admit.....and it is not about peace. OR religious freedom. It is the desire to do so, because you CAN. Because this great country allows certain freedoms. Freedoms I might add that Islamic countries around the world do NOT allow for those who are of other religions.

I think I am able to say with somewhat certainty, that if that mosque is built, it will not stand as an emblem of religious freedom....it will stand as a dark reminder of what happened on September 11. 2001. And it will hurt....all of us that watched that terrible tragedy unfold. Those of us that cried, and whose hearts were broken over the senseless loss of lives, believe building that mosque there is wrong. It will always be wrong......to those that remember.