BY KATHLEEN MERRYMAN. Published: 09/11/10
As much as we should never forget the events of Sept. 11, 2001, we should remember what we promised each other in the days following the tragedy.
We took up “United We Stand” as an unofficial motto.
We spoke of setting aside our differences to prove that terrorists cannot crack a nation of so many freedoms, including religion. We gathered at memorials and recognized one another as brothers and sisters in loss.
If you looked only at the national news, those broken promises would hurt your heart.
In the great graph of American politics, we’re riding one of our combative partisan peaks. Political disagreement is the energy that drives this nation, but occasional surges overload the circuits and short out reasoned debate and governance.
[snip]
Ordinary people looked to the examples of our forbears and realized that real power, real unity, lie not in big talk but in accepting responsibility to work together to build the nation you want.
If you doubt my words – and you should question the words of people who get paid for their opinions – look at what your neighbors are doing on this day.
[snip]
... remind yourself of the decency, respect and unity we pledged to each other after that awful day nine years ago.
3 comments:
Thanks for posting this Anon. For a time after those awful events, it seemed like we all knew how to do what was right. Wish it could've lasted longer.
God Bless Kathleen Merryman!
Shortly after the incident that happened at the diner, she wrote a beautiful peace about her own dealings with guilt and grief. I was so moved I actually e-mailed her. She ended up calling me back within minutes, and we ended up talking for almost an hour...what a sweet lady!
She gave me her advice, and it really helped. She even called me back the next day to check up on me.
The world would be a much better place with more people like Kathleen in it.
You're welcome.
I watched much of the History Channel's 9/11 anniversary programming yesterday, and in all the footage that was shown I saw only two instances of someone not doing what was right-- a man was kicking someone who had fallen down in front of him during the flight from WTC, and one loud, profane man was shouting that we needed to kill everybody related to the hijackers. I believe that was even before we knew the identity of the hijackers.
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