It’s truly amazing how fast 10 years can fly by. And it’s amazing how after 10 years the pain still lingers on.
The 10th anniversary of one of the worst acts of terrorism in World History leaves a lot of wounds that show no signs of healing. A good reminder that life forever has changed for me was just getting home from work tonight. Both the FDR and West Side Highway were a virtual parking lot, littered with flashing lights, cars, cabs and trucks forced to the side of the road for random searches. This, a day after authorities received “threats” made against New York City and Washington DC, served as a stark reminder that as much as we’d like to believe we’re safer and perhaps done with such insanity (President Obama did hunt Bin Laden down and kill him didn’t he?), there are still those in this world who feel so hopeless, so miserable and are so angry, they’re receptive to “distorted” interpretations of our great religions, promises of salvation and dreams of having their names remembered, revered and feared by many for years to come.
My point? This sounds like a lot of the promises our children receive from gang members, drug dealers, hustlers and conditions including poverty that continue to lead our young people astray. While we remember 9/11, let’s not forget just last week we were trying to make sense of the numerous Labor Day weekend shootings that seemed to serve as a wrap up to an unusually violent summer. This is a great weekend to spend with our children. What are they thinking about these days? Perhaps we didn’t spend enough time with the children who witnessed 9/11/2001. When one thinks of the mass horror and violence that took place on that day, it’s not that hard to envision why a 24 year old in present-day South Bronx or Newark, sees “violence” as little more than a necessary part of their existence.
By reaching THIS generation of children, perhaps we can begin to make amends for the damage inflicted upon the “9/11 Generation” and truly honor the memory of those who lost their lives on what began as a uncommonly warm, sunny, September morning, 10 years ago.