10 Years...

 

Can it really be 10 years since those events that changed and shaped us all forever as a nation?

Each of us is individually more cautious, or perhaps more jaded.  We're all certainly more aware of our own fragility and vulnerability as humans as a result of those moments.   It's taken us 10 years to really let the lessons of our collective resilience and strength sink in.   

Life is about so much more than "what happens to us."    It's really about how we deal with what happens to us.    It's about whether or not we face life's difficulties with grace and dignity.  We've learned so much about the courage and bravery of so many people on that day 10 years ago.

Now, we're hearing about "credible threats," from people who mean to do us harm.   I don't want to dwell on that.  I don't want to feel angry and stressed and vengeful and bitter.  I want to revel in the mystery and beauty of each moment that I've been given in this Big Adventure.   

On this 10 year anniversary of 9/11, I want to remember those who weren't given another day.   I'll reflect on our troops, who are right now in harm's way, trying their best to keep the rest of us safe.  And most of all, I'm going to think about how fortunate I am to have the cherished gift of this very moment in time.  

Right now.

"One need not be a chamber to be haunted;

One need not be a house;

The brain has corridors surpassing

Material place."  

(-Emily Dickinson; "Time and Eternity")