Remembering September 11th.

September 11th is a day we will never forget. I think we will always remember exactly where we were when this happened to US.

Where was I went it happened? Sitting at my desk at work. I had just returned from vacation following my the funeral of my father, who died on September 1, 2001 -- also, 9-1-01. Debbie's mother (who just passed away in July) had called in to tell us the news. I had Yahoo set as my homepage, so I was able to pull up the news. I remember Sam (now retired) telling me not to lose the connection as we watched in horror - one of the "Twin Towers" burning, then the other tower, the Pentagon and another plane went down in Pennsylvania. All of these things were happening around us - we should be scared, but instead we were numb - like watching a bad movie.

I also remember that it was a crystal clear blue-sky day. In the days following it was early quiet - no planes were allowed to fly, except for military planes - and if you heard a plan, your eyes were riveted to the sky.

They let us go home early that day and I was glued to the TV watching the towers collapse over and over again - just to make sure it was real. But, there was a feeling of unity in the aftermath and everyone proudly flew the America flag.

Five years later - area we in a better place? Maybe. But, where is that feeling of unity? Where are all of the American flags? Five years is a long time to live on the edge. We, afterall, tend to be a land of forgetfulness and complacency. There are those who really were changed on September 11, 2001 and those that were troubled for a few days and then went back to shopping and whining. There are those that criticize the President and second guess his every decision and whine about the price of gas. They complain about our men getting killed in Iraq - dying to protect us - but what about the drug related shootings in the city? That's American killing American.

But, people can still go to work everyday, wearing their security badges that prove that they belong in the building - a trend created from 9/11/01.

Yes, we remember, because we can never forget.