Monday, September 11, 2006
remembering, honoring, observing
There are many ways to observe today. One I recommend is to read the gentle, powerful article by Peggy Noonan about the sounds and words of 9/11. It was in the Wall Street Journal and I also saved it here. It's evocative and touching (read: bring a tissue). 
Although I wasn't in Manhattan that day and therefore did not hear the sounds myself, clearly the sounds must have been puzzling and shocking. And, like her, I was amazed at the calm and the abundance of the phone calls. It's amazing that "no one said anything unneeded, extraneous or small." I can't imagine being so clear-headed at such a time or that you would think of calling, let alone do it, so that your last moments are spent not in rancor, bitterness or anger but by telling someone you care about that you are thinking of them and that you love them. How marvelous. If only no one would ever again have to plumb the profoundly deep kindness that, in moments of unavoidable crisis, some people discover in themselves. My own (small) part in the bloggers' tribute to the 2996 is displaying Joshua Vitale's profile, published in the NYT October 28, 2001.
Although I wasn't in Manhattan that day and therefore did not hear the sounds myself, clearly the sounds must have been puzzling and shocking. And, like her, I was amazed at the calm and the abundance of the phone calls. It's amazing that "no one said anything unneeded, extraneous or small." I can't imagine being so clear-headed at such a time or that you would think of calling, let alone do it, so that your last moments are spent not in rancor, bitterness or anger but by telling someone you care about that you are thinking of them and that you love them. How marvelous. If only no one would ever again have to plumb the profoundly deep kindness that, in moments of unavoidable crisis, some people discover in themselves. My own (small) part in the bloggers' tribute to the 2996 is displaying Joshua Vitale's profile, published in the NYT October 28, 2001.Labels: people, reflections, s.p.e.e.d.ing
Post a Comment