after 9/11

Make no mistake about it. What happened on September 11th in 2001 was heinous. Awful. Evil. Remember that our simplest, working definition of “evil” is the absence of God. Despite what the terrorists may have convinced themselves, they were clearly not operating under any power of God.

The remembrance is sobering. People of all walks of life come together to share stories… stories of shock, suffering, surviving… being spared. Stories of disbelief. Also of healing and heroism.

Some of those heroes are utterly amazing…

Welles Crowther, the 24-year-old, red bandanna clad equities trader, who directed shocked personnel to the stairwell — and then went back up, saving countless lives in the South Tower…

Rick Rescorla, the head of security for Morgan Stanley, also in the South Tower, grabbing a bullhorn and ordering the immediate evacuation of the financial services company’s 22 floors. He kept climbing up, looking for survivors in the minutes before the collapse…

All those on Flight 93, who democratically voted and unanimously agreed to fight back, keeping their jet from being perverted into a missile to kill hundreds or thousands more…

And one of the things I love about the stories shared that day is that we listen.

We listen to the people. We listen to the stories. Recognizing listening as being one of the most accessible manifestations of honor, we remember what’s most important. And unlike regular daily life, we let nothing else get in the way.

Which reminds me of a little bit more…

One of the most profound realities of life is that out of the bad, good can come. Also true is that bad things and good things can happen simultaneously. I don’t always understand that, but I know it to be true.

Hence, while absolutely nothing minimizes the attack on the World Trade Center, I’m reminded of other things that happened that day…

Across the pond, the always elegant and respectful Queen Elizabeth II instructed the Coldstream Guards to play "The Star-Spangled Banner" during the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, honoring the American victims, breaking centuries of strict royal tradition.

Here on the Capitol steps, Democrats and Republicans realized they have more in common than they do not, and gathered together — some 150 of them — and boldly sang “God Bless America,” in unison, side-by-side.

In addition to the good we saw that day, adding to the some 22 million that celebrate their birthday on September 11th globally, on that day in 2001, approximately 13,238 babies were born in the U.S.

That is indeed good. Those persons should be celebrated, regardless of the day, hard as that may often be.

In the days, therefore, after 9/11, I pray we don’t forget the good…

As is embedded in the lyrics the congresspersons sang live on the steps that day, they began by acknowledging “the storm clouds” that had gathered.

But as they continued to sing, they cried, “let us all be grateful” and let us “raise our voices in solemn prayer.”

Together. United. Keeping what’s most important, most important.

Far more than one day out of the year.

Respectfully…