A day in history....

Yesterday was September 11th. A date you will some day see in your history books. I hope that by the time you are old enough to read this, God will still reside in most hearts and fear will not be a part of your everyday life. As American's most of us do not really know fear. We hear about it and see it on TV, but most of us do not live in a situation where you must run from your house to the next building in fear of being shot, stabbed, or bombed. But on September 11, 2001, all Americans experienced a fear that most had never been subjected to. I remember the morning very well. I was at work when I heard about the first crash. As with any plane crash we all knew there would be many lives lost and our sympathies were immediately there, but no real fear. After all, it was just an accident, right. Then as the news came in about the next plane, and the next, ...... it became very evident, it was no accident. The United States was under attack. One of the girls in our office building ran home and got a portable TV so we could see the news as it came in. We did at least get a moment of relief from fear while setting up the TV. You see there was no cable TV in our building and it sits in a hollow next to the river bottom. So we had to make ourselves an antennae. We gathered aluminum foil from the kitchen, anything we could find to help get reception. The fear soon returned quickly as we got reception and saw the pictures coming in of the twin towers in New York burning and crumbling to the ground. We sat in awe as each of us wondered what was next. I immediately started calling my family. I couldn't reach Michael at first. He was still in school in Chattanooga and I was frantic until I finally heard his voice. Of course, he was okay, but I wanted him home! You see being a mom is just like being an old mother hen. Whenever there is something threatening our babies (no matter how old they are), we want to gather them under our wings and protect them. The fear that something major might happen in our area and my family would be spread in different places, not knowing if another was okay or not, was almost more than I could bear. Living in a military town, security was bumped up everywhere quickly. Flights were stopped immediately all across the country. The only aircraft in the sky was military. Working in a plant near a major river means we get lots of military traffic overhead. Just the sound of an airplane or helicopter would send us to the window to make sure it was safe. I can't explain the fear that day brought. That night our community gathered at Henrietta's Volunteer Fire Department hall and held a church service to pray for our country, the families of those who were victims of the attack, and yes, we also prayed for the attackers. You see, even in this early time, we had to begin forgiving our attackers or we would continue to live in fear. God gave me peace that night and I saw all of my immediate family members, except Michael. But God brought him home to me over the weekend, so I could just see him and touch him to know God was still in control. Now there was and still is a lot of question as to whether we should retaliate. We are human, and most of the citizens of the United States supported fully the decision to "make a statement" that we would not sit quietly and watch our country attacked. I'm not going to get into any more details, you can read about it in your history books or whatever method you'll be using by the time you read this, but I just wanted to share how I felt that day with you. You see life is not always fun. We have to learn to deal with the bad and sad times along with the good. We can't stick our heads in the sand and pretend they aren't happening. They won't go away. This is the same in your relationships with your siblings, parents, grandparents, friends, co-workers, and so on. If there is a time of adversity, stand up and face it head on. Talk about it, listen, and be sympathetic even if you feel you were wronged. And never be afraid or to proud to say you're sorry (and mean it). This is the only way to truly heal and move forward without regret. Love and hugs! Gramma