The Land of the Free and The Home of the Brave....

I've often heard my parents say, "I remember the day that Kennedy was shot." They remember where they were and the aftermath that followed that fateful day. There are people that remember the details the day Lennon was shot, or the Challenger shuttle exploded; I remember the day two planes flew into the World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon, and one into a field in a small town in Pennsylvania.

It's been seven years and I still recall standing in the teachers' lounge waiting to make copies and hearing someone say "A plane hit the World Trade Center." I remember going to the office and hearing it on the radio. Then I remember asking my mother where my father was. The aftermath of this tragedy lives on, seven years later, as we are still involved in a needless war and as this tragedy is being used by every political pundit trying to win an election. Seven years later, September 11th is the headline on major news venues. Yet what has this horrific thing taught us? Not much.

During those first months, this nation came together as a whole. Black, white, purple...Muslim, Jewish, Catholic....vegetarian, omnivore, carnivore. It didn't matter. We were united as a Nation. A strong nation, asking to Be strong and be One. We reached out to our brothers and sisters and grieved together. Today...we are divided...by race, culture, and political party. Tragedy should have turned us into a stronger, more cohesive United States...hell, United is in our country's name. United we stand, Divided we fall became our motto. But, no.

Perhaps one day. One day people will stop looking at the color of the skin, the clothes one wears, and the God one prays to. I work in an environment where I have the great responsibilty to shape and educate the minds of the youth. Perhap, one day, they will see the world as others wished it to be. Full of peace, love, and understanding.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. ~ Martin Luther King Jr.


I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent. ~ Ghandi

Interesting Read:

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2008/09/11/spending-seven-septembers-hijacking-my-religion-back/#more-8460