September 11, 2010

Today on the anniversary of a tragedy that affected many people, a tragedy that occurred close to home yet made home worldwide, I stayed silent. I did not speak a word. I lit a candle and remembered those I knew personally, those I loved personally and those who touched me in the aftermath of the destruction. I thought of those who went to work that day not knowing it would be their last and those who were left behind because it was. I thought of those who made it home and carry with them the bits and pieces that fell from the sky. I thought of those who were part of the destruction and wondered if on the moments of impact if they saw the inhumanity and cruelty of their actions and I wondered who mourned them.

I sent up a prayer for us all.

It’s 2010. We have yet to complete the task of finding the man who orchestrated it all, yet many, many lives have been changed and lost. Both sides have killed in the name of freedom and in the belief we are protecting ourselves from the evil of each other. We have yet to close the hole in the ground and more importantly the holes in ourselves yet we have wasted breath, time and resources arguing and debating about doing the right thing, holding the right beliefs and the right ways to coerce others into seeing and believing that our choices and actions are just and correct. And still there are those of us on both sides who mourn people that can never be replaced, that have become memories to share with family and friends and strangers who will listen.

As an individual I cannot grasp the scope of the true destruction or the true progress that has been made since the day I, and thousands of others, watched from office windows, television sets and street corners as the world changed. But I can say that this is a day I do not want to remember despite never wanting to forget and remembering it in silence is the best I can do in order to avoid celebrating something that should never be a celebratory event.

© Simone Rene 2010