That Day in September.

Eight years ago tomorrow morning as I was getting out of bed, my wife told me to come quick to the television set. It was just after 8:46 AM and a jet, we later learned was American Airlines Flight 11, had just flown into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. As we were glued to CNN trying to figure out what might have happened, we saw the live shot at 9:03 AM of another airliner hit the South Tower! I can still remember that feeling in my stomach, trying to decide if I was really seeing what I was seeing, of somehow it was some sort of new Bruce Willis movie, or we were being duped with a new millennium "War of the Worlds" broadcast. Later we learned that that ill fated plane was American Airlines Flight 175.

How many remember exactly what you were doing that day? I sat transfixed watching in horror as the chaos swirled, then watched our brothers and sisters from 90 different countries who worked in those Twin Towers running for their lives, all the while as those brave men and women in the New York City Police Dept, Fire Department, Port Authority, and other paramedics and EMTs running into the danger to save others. As I type this I find the sickness of my stomach coming back as it did that day watching many of the at least 200 people who jumped to their deaths trying to avoid the raging flames and heat. Is that an image any of us will ever fully get over, or even should we if we could?

Later we learned that another plane, American Airlines Flight 77 had been flown into the Pentagon. Shortly there after a fourth plane, American Airlines Flight 93, believed to be targeting either the Capital Building or the White House. However, there was phone calls that had connected the passengers to their families who alerted them to the other planes being flown into targets as weapons in this new terrorist war. With that knowledge these American heroes knew that they were not going quietly without giving a fight. They decided to fight and take over the high jackers or at least to stop them from hitting their target. The last thing anyone heard over one of the cell phone transmissions was Todd Beamer saying to his patriot bothers "Let's Roll!" The passengers were able to defeat the terrorist plans to destroy their target and advance their evil by crashing the plane into a field at Shanksville, Pennsylvania at 10:03 AM, where all 44 passengers died, along with the terrorists who high jacked them.

Later I had to go to my office, I was selling homes for a builder in McCordsville, IN. It was surreal, I couldn't figure out if I should go, stay home, what should I do? What could I do? I will admit that I didn't accomplish anything, but sit there and flip between radio news reports, this, and watch CNN is about what I did for days glued to this story and all that went with it. All airplanes were grounded earlier in the day to stop this chaos, so no planes were flying that day. There were some road construction guys who were standing around talking across from my model, and I wondered over and talked with them as well. Everyone was trying to find our balance. We were all neighbors as we hadn't been for years in this country. While we were talking we heard an earth shaking boom, we all jumped out of our skins, our first thought is that nearby Ft. Ben may have just been hit. Then we looked up to see a large jumbo jet flying over surrounded by 4 fighters, and we realized it was a sonic boom, something I hadn't heard since they were outlawed over the continental U.S. when I was still a kid. We knew that had to be President Bush heading back to the White House, who else could it have been.

America was attacked, our way of life was attacked, it was an attack that showed us the level of evil of those who hated us were willing to do. There were 3,017 people who died and 6,291 more who were injured. 2,603 in the Towers, 125 at the Pentagon, 44 in Pennsylvania, there are still 24 missing.

For days later we saw as those brave men and women who run into harms way to save others were laid to rest. The New York Fire Dept. lost 341 firemen, and 2 paramedics, New York Police Dept. lost 23, the New York Port Authority lost 37, and another 8 EMT's and Paramedics from private units as well. There were a total of 411 Emergency workers lost that day. I remember the pain that came through in Rudy Giuliani's book as he spoke of trying to attend all of those funerals.

Most of us who saw 9/11/2001 will never forget, it will always be a big part of who we are, and how we see the world around us. My wife has a close friend who works in downtown New York who was escaping in a cab watching the towers fall out the rear view window. Who would not be changed forever with that experience?

Let us pray together today for those lost, and those left behind, as well as for our Nation as a whole. We must honor them, we must be proud of those 44 who chose to take action, overcome natural fears, and protect their country. Please, please, never forget.

Let's Roll.