I woke up today and thought to myself, “Man! 22 years!” The common refrain is, “Never Forget,” but the further we get from September 11, 2001, the greater the number of people who were not alive when this happened. My fear is that there are people who are in the process of not only forgetting what happened that day, but the impact that event had on our society as well.
I was driving, on my way to work, when the DJ’s of the Bob & Tom Show (The top morning radio show in Indianapolis), broke in and announced that there was an explosion in one of the Twin Towers in New York City. By the time I arrived at my school on the south side of Indy, the reports were coming in that an airplane had flown into the tower. I parked and went inside.
They had a TV turned on in the Media Center, and a crowd of teachers were around the TV. I got there just as the second plane crashed into the second tower. I looked at the staff and said, “This is an attack.” We stood around the TV, stunned as we watched the horror unfold. Then, it was time to greet the students. so we left the TV on, and went to our respective duty stations.
Normally, I supervised students being dropped off by the school buses. Judy Livingston, the school Principal, asked me to post at the main entrance. There was a circular drive there, and parents would come down a long drive, enter the circle, drop their students off at the main entrance, then leave.
At the time, I wore a black cowboy hat. I stand 6’1″, and at the time I was around 230lbs. That hat made me appear bigger, and Judy thought I would project calmness and security when parents arrived. She was right, as she usually was. Parents would stop and ask if classes were still in session, and I would tell them they were. They would ask if their children would be safe, and I told them there was no safer place to be. They would nod, drop their children off, and leave. Schools were canceled the rest of the week, but on that day of chaos and fear, we removed one source of anxiety for those parents.
After the children had gone for the day, Judy dismissed the staff, and we all went home to watch the horror on the TV. New York City, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, PA. All were crime scenes of the largest terror attack in our history. Watching the towers come down was horrifying. Hearing about the people who jumped was terrifying. The thing that really hit home for me was when I went out to my car and was struck by the silence. Indianapolis International Airport was located on the southwest side of Indy, right off of I-465. The school was generally under the flight path of departures, and the roar of jet engines became background noise. Until that day. That day I looked up. No planes, no contrails, no engine noise. Fittingly, it seemed that America had gone silent to mourn its losses.
Air flight changed that day, due to 9/11. The TSA and Department of Homeland Security were formed due to 9/11. We invaded Afghanistan to punish that country, governed by the Taliban, for sheltering the terrorists, due to 9/11. Passengers get involved in issues on flights, due to 9/11. Our intelligence agencies grew more powerful, due to 9/11. Our government grew larger, due to 9/11. We started the War on Terror, a conflict that has gone on since, due to 9/11. We invaded Iraq, due to 9/11.
Our society had mixed emotions. Toby Keith sang, in Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue, that “we’ll put a boot in your ass, it’s the American way”. Alan Jackson sang Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning, where he reminded us that “Faith, hope, and love are some good things He gave us, And the greatest is love”. Darryl Worley sang, in Have You Forgotten, “Have you forgotten how it felt that day, To see your homeland under fire, And her people blown away”.
The movie 12 Strong, starring Chris Hemsworth, told the fascinating story of the first U.S. Special Forces operators to enter Afghanistan after 9/11. In World Trade Center, starring Nicholas Cage, we saw the inspiring story of the last living survivors pulled from Ground Zero. In Flight 93, we saw the heroic story of the passengers who fought back against the terrorists, causing the plane to crash into a field in Shanksville, PA, instead of it’s intended target in Washington, D.C.
We lost a significant number of patriots on 9/11. We started the War on Terror. We invaded Afghanistan and Iraq. We created new governmental agenies. We passed the sweeping Patriot Act. And we made today Patriot’s Day. It’s our day to reflect on what happened, remember the 2,977 lives lost in the four attacks including 470 first responders and military personnel, the estimated 7,052 US military combatants, over 8,100 US military contractors and more than 14,800 US-allied coalition troops killed in the wars as of 2023. As a country, we still remember Pearl Harbor, both the event and the actions afterwards. We will do the same with 9/11.
We must never forget.
I hear people saying we don’t need this war
I say there’s some things worth fighting for
What about our freedom and this piece of ground
We didn’t get to keep ’em by backing down
They say we don’t realize the mess we’re getting in
Before you start your preaching
Let me ask you this my friend
Have you forgotten how it felt that day
To see your homeland under fire
And her people blown away
Have you forgotten when those towers fell
We had neighbors still inside
Going through a living hell
And you say we shouldn’t worry ’bout Bin Laden
Have you forgotten
They took all the footage off my TV
Said it’s too disturbing for you and me
It’ll just breed anger that’s what the experts say
If it was up to me I’d show it everyday
Some say this country’s just out looking for a fight
After 9/11 man I’d have to say that’s right
Have you forgotten how it felt that day
To see your homeland under fire
And her people blown away
Have you forgotten when those towers fell
We had neighbors still inside
Going through a living hell
And you say we shouldn’t worry ’bout Bin Laden
Have you forgotten
I’ve been there with the soldiers
Who’ve gone away to war
And you can bet that they remember
Just what they’re fighting for
Have you forgotten all the people killed
Some went down like heros in that Pennsylvania field
Have you forgotten about our Pentagon
All the loved ones that we lost
And those left to carry on
Don’t you tell me not to worry about Bin Laden
Have you forgotten
Have you forgotten
Have you forgotten
Written by Darryl Worley and Wynn Marble
Have You Forgotten? lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Reservoir Media Management Inc, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc
Meditations of a Bald, Fat Guy 