THAT Tuesday morning

This morning was so much like that Tuesday morning. You know, THAT Tuesday morning 11 years ago when “the world stopped turning.” Like you, I can remember it like yesterday. Isn’t it funny how our minds grasp the moment during a tragedy? My wife and I were getting ready for work.  Our one-year old son was fussy and we were squabbling trying to get us and him ready.  I don’t know what it’s like at your house in the morning, but it’s probably much like ours — it’s a bloody synchronized ballet of chaos. We had a little white kitchen television on, tuned to Good Morning America (it could have been the Today Show though).  They broke in how a small plane had apparently collided with the World Trade Center.  Pictures showed a gaping hole and black smoke belching out into the crystal-clear blue sky.

I knew it wasn’t an accident. How could it be? The last time a plane collided into a New York skyscraper was when a B-25 Mitchell bomber collided with the Empire State Building — and that was in the fog.

My wife and I were fussing about something but realized we needed to stop. World events eclipsed our tiny drama.

And then the second plane slammed into the second tower.  The world hasn’t been the same since.

My son is 12 now. He has been joined by two brothers. All three of them don’t remember a pre-9/11 world. They never saw the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center jutting into the sky.  They don’t know what flying was like pre-TSA.  They’ve been subjected to more security. Their rights have eroded.  They didn’t quite understand the joy we felt when we found out Osama Bin Laden met a fearful death at the hands of Navy SEALS.  9/11 is just a moment in history to them. It’s not a scar on their hearts.

That’s not a totally bad thing.

As I relive the horrible images I saw 11 years ago, I’ll mourn the past. But I’ll also grasp onto the promise of a bright future.  I’ll dig out my “United We Stand” poster and salute the flag. I’ll thank a first responder.  And I’ll pray my sons never have to see our country attacked again like we did THAT Tuesday morning.