Pausing to remember victims is appropriate
There has been no shortage of reminders that the one-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks is just three days away.
In the upcoming days, newspapers and TV stations throughout the country will no doubt ask the questions, “Where does the United States stand? After one year, where are we now?”
As we close in on the day where thousands of Americans perished in the worst act of terrorism inflicted on our country’s soil, really not much has changed. Sure we flocked to church in the weeks and months after Sept. 11 and some of us made sacrifices we would not normally make.
But now it’s pretty much life as usual. In our fast-paced, always-on-the-go society, there is seldom time to pause for reflection. In Tennessee, where we are far removed from New York City and Washington D.C., there are not an abundance of family connections to those areas.
For us, the attacks didn’t hit as close to home. They didn’t occur in our own backyard.
But as Americans, we still felt the pain. The sting of having our country attacked and our innocent people murdered had each and every one of us searching for answers.
One year later, those answers have yet to be found. We still don’t know if bin Laden is alive or dead. We don’t know if and when another attack may be coming.
Study after study has shown our airport security is still miserable as people continue to smuggle weapons past checkpoints. And the most difficult part of obtaining a driver’s license – our basic form of ID – is the hours it often takes waiting in line.
Since widespread changes are not likely to take place any time soon, we can at least take a few moments to remember those who died one year ago this Wednesday. It’s refreshing to see so many of our county schools are planning some form of ceremony that day.
While it is no longer appropriate to ask students and people to stop for a moment to pray, it is fitting to request a moment of silence for our fallen Americans.
Most of the people who died were everyday citizens who had just started what they believed was another day at the office. Others were firemen and rescue workers who bravely charged into the World Trade Center with the hope of saving lives.
These people deserve to be remembered and this country – as a whole – needs to contemplate the influence Sept. 11 made on the United States.
Was there an impact? Have we forgotten what happened one short year ago?
We may have, but Wednesday should be a day where we once again rekindle American pride and pay tribute to those who weren’t as fortunate as we are. For thousands of Americans, there were not lucky enough to survive the terrorists attacks. It is only fitting we pause for a moment in their memory.