Dear America,
So today is the eleventh anniversary of 9/11.
Perhaps this day - September 11, 2001 - started like any other day; just as the sun came up this morning, the day began just as it ever was. For me, my little kindergärtner was beginning her second week at school.
We had no idea what happened to us that day until all the pieces started coming together.
For most of us, we were simply stunned, in shock.
And in each year thereafter, we have felt the day -- remembering exactly where we were, who we were with, or perhaps who alerted us to the news. I was merrily going through my morning when my papa called me and said, "well the world has changed as we know it." I'm like, what? "turn on your TV..."
tears just rolled down my cheeks and then I looked at my girl -- who at this point is puzzled and wondering why her mama is so upset all of a sudden....
I thought, what should I do -- take her to school? on a day like this? and worried of what may come?
Well, I took her to school; I just found myself unable to let go of her hand.
Nobody was saying a word as we lined up our children in their proper place, by classroom.
And then, instead of the teachers taking their students immediately to class, the principle addressed the children -- setting aside his authority over them and coming to them more like a dad. He took the time to calmly alert the entire student body all at once, to displace all fear in the back of their little fertile minds: 'something happened in the world today, but you are safe here.'
Of course, he really couldn't guarantee that, could he? He knew that just about anything might happen or could happen before the end of the day -- but his job in this very moment was to reassure the children their day would go on just as it ever was.
When we look at the job of a president -- we realize how this tight rope is walked each and every day in some respect.
Their job is to keep it real with the American people, to keep us informed -- and to reassure us, our country, our community, our daily lives will be kept safe and sound.
Just imagine that moment, when the planes hit the twin towers -- our president was sitting in a classroom of second graders listening to the students read to him a story, "The Pet Goat."
Bush was chastised for not leaving right away. He spent a long seven minutes more with the children, allowing them the courtesy of finishing the story -- after all, they were just kids.
ABC News captured the inner thoughts of a few of these students, now eleven years later:
Even the teacher, Sandra Kay Daniels, had to remain calm, noting her response:
good advice.
The classroom is bound together for life, having shared this day -- this morning that started out like any other morning -- oh except for that special visit from the president of the United States.
The kids have stayed in touch; while Ms. Daniels simply puts it this way "What happened to us made us part of history. And no matter where they go in life they will always be my babies."
And funny, as this fits the president's sentiments exactly, to the dotting of the i's and the crossing of the t's:
As the lesson plan comes full circle.
Whether taking a look back to this infamous day of 9/11, or taking a reality check with our lives today, our "good" seems to remain an enigma in many ways. So much of what gets noticed these days, is the bad stuff. It becomes all about the struggle, the lies, the divide, the differences of opinion, and all the things considered just plum broken.
It got me thinking -- we have seen and read the RNC Platform -- we have seen and read and amended the DNC Platform. But what, exactly, is the AMERICAN Platform all of us can truly live by in a bi-partisan way? Where do we find our security and affirm our faith? How do we really go on, united?
For kicks and giggles, we could just go back to a little something something written and published hundreds of years ago -- as in our Declaration of Independence and in our Constitution of the United States of America.
But the rest is up to us, to not only read the words and understand them fully -- but to also, individually, and hopefully collectively, to respond to the world, first and foremost, with a sense of calm.
adding chaos to chaos just makes greater chaos.
Today, 9/11/12 = just over 16 Trillion
We have to leave this world a better place than we found it -- for our children's sake, and for the sake of our Republic. We must:
calmly.
intelligently.
compassionately.
honestly.
courageously.
faithfully.
look upon this new day
as if 9/11 just happened this morning
and act accordingly.
it's strange. in some ways, I think I haven't stop crying since.
I do hope -- as I humbly ask myself before passing this thought on to you -- I do hope we are all working upon ourselves to change for the better, to do the right thing, to speak up, to make a difference in the lives we touch for the better...for the sake of our children and our future.
God bless us and the United States of America.
Make it a Good Day, G
So today is the eleventh anniversary of 9/11.
Perhaps this day - September 11, 2001 - started like any other day; just as the sun came up this morning, the day began just as it ever was. For me, my little kindergärtner was beginning her second week at school.
We had no idea what happened to us that day until all the pieces started coming together.
For most of us, we were simply stunned, in shock.
And in each year thereafter, we have felt the day -- remembering exactly where we were, who we were with, or perhaps who alerted us to the news. I was merrily going through my morning when my papa called me and said, "well the world has changed as we know it." I'm like, what? "turn on your TV..."
tears just rolled down my cheeks and then I looked at my girl -- who at this point is puzzled and wondering why her mama is so upset all of a sudden....
I thought, what should I do -- take her to school? on a day like this? and worried of what may come?
Well, I took her to school; I just found myself unable to let go of her hand.
Nobody was saying a word as we lined up our children in their proper place, by classroom.
And then, instead of the teachers taking their students immediately to class, the principle addressed the children -- setting aside his authority over them and coming to them more like a dad. He took the time to calmly alert the entire student body all at once, to displace all fear in the back of their little fertile minds: 'something happened in the world today, but you are safe here.'
Of course, he really couldn't guarantee that, could he? He knew that just about anything might happen or could happen before the end of the day -- but his job in this very moment was to reassure the children their day would go on just as it ever was.
When we look at the job of a president -- we realize how this tight rope is walked each and every day in some respect.
Their job is to keep it real with the American people, to keep us informed -- and to reassure us, our country, our community, our daily lives will be kept safe and sound.
Just imagine that moment, when the planes hit the twin towers -- our president was sitting in a classroom of second graders listening to the students read to him a story, "The Pet Goat."
Bush was chastised for not leaving right away. He spent a long seven minutes more with the children, allowing them the courtesy of finishing the story -- after all, they were just kids.
ABC News captured the inner thoughts of a few of these students, now eleven years later:
"I think if he would have panicked that was the tone he was setting for the whole country," said Chantal Guerrero. "If he wanted the country to stay calm, he needed to show that he was calm."
Even the teacher, Sandra Kay Daniels, had to remain calm, noting her response:
"I told them something terrible had happened and President Bush needs to go," she said. "Remember they were in second grade. They were only 7 years old so I wasn't going to give them every piece of information."and adding thoughts to how her lesson plan for the year was forever altered:
"I had to teach them really early about terrorists and about mean people in the world. So I would tell them choose good over evil. Do right when it's in your hand and in your power to do so."
good advice.
The classroom is bound together for life, having shared this day -- this morning that started out like any other morning -- oh except for that special visit from the president of the United States.
The kids have stayed in touch; while Ms. Daniels simply puts it this way "What happened to us made us part of history. And no matter where they go in life they will always be my babies."
And funny, as this fits the president's sentiments exactly, to the dotting of the i's and the crossing of the t's:
"You and I will never forget Sept. 11, '01," the president wrote in a letter to one of the students, Natalia Jones-Pinkney. "But remember out of the evil done to America will come good."
[in other words, there there, my dear, it will be okay]
As the lesson plan comes full circle.
Whether taking a look back to this infamous day of 9/11, or taking a reality check with our lives today, our "good" seems to remain an enigma in many ways. So much of what gets noticed these days, is the bad stuff. It becomes all about the struggle, the lies, the divide, the differences of opinion, and all the things considered just plum broken.
It got me thinking -- we have seen and read the RNC Platform -- we have seen and read and amended the DNC Platform. But what, exactly, is the AMERICAN Platform all of us can truly live by in a bi-partisan way? Where do we find our security and affirm our faith? How do we really go on, united?
For kicks and giggles, we could just go back to a little something something written and published hundreds of years ago -- as in our Declaration of Independence and in our Constitution of the United States of America.
But the rest is up to us, to not only read the words and understand them fully -- but to also, individually, and hopefully collectively, to respond to the world, first and foremost, with a sense of calm.
adding chaos to chaos just makes greater chaos.
We have to calmly approach our world of debt and unfunded liabilities, our lifetime of issues pointing fingers, our history of not doing the right thing when it comes to our fiscal policy and practice, and fix it.
National Debt on 9/11 = 5.77 TrillionToday, 9/11/12 = just over 16 Trillion
We have to leave this world a better place than we found it -- for our children's sake, and for the sake of our Republic. We must:
calmly.
intelligently.
compassionately.
honestly.
courageously.
faithfully.
look upon this new day
as if 9/11 just happened this morning
and act accordingly.
it's strange. in some ways, I think I haven't stop crying since.
I do hope -- as I humbly ask myself before passing this thought on to you -- I do hope we are all working upon ourselves to change for the better, to do the right thing, to speak up, to make a difference in the lives we touch for the better...for the sake of our children and our future.
God bless us and the United States of America.
Make it a Good Day, G
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