Remembering

Excerpt from my journal September 10, 2001

I decided this morning that September is my favorite month, and it’s not just the anticipation of birthday loot. It’s just getting cool enough to wear flannel pyjama pants again. The sun rises late, and makes the mountains shiny for my drive to work at 7:58 am. The leaves are pretty colors, but still on the trees. And, especially in Provo, there’s something in the air that promises exciting new adventures. Plus there’s the birthday loot. Most people think of Spring as the season for new beginnings, but for me it’s fall.

Excerpt from my journal September 11, 2001

Today an unknown aggressor declared war on the United States of America. Four commercial airplanes were hijacked; two crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, collapsing the entire structure. Another hit the Pentagon in Washington, and the fourth crashed outside of Pittsburgh.

It's so unbelievable how you can wake up one morning and the whole world is different. I don't think we even realize how this will change everything -- if this is the new face of warfare for the 21st century . . . then we won't just return to life as normal.What will we do from here? How will we recover? And how will this change our day-to-day lives?

Americans may be willing to give up some freedoms in exchange for security. But I don’t think beefier metal detectors are going to be enough. No one can design equipment to detect suicidal zealots or maniacal psychopaths.

Five years have passed since that tragic day. In that time, I've married, had a child, moved a few times, entered grad school, and gotten started on another child. In a word I've lived. Although I hardly thought it possible five years ago, life has returned to normal. But the world is still changed. And I am changed.