9/11/11 Too Deep For Tears - Dionysus Beauty - (link to article on my website "Dionysus Beauty")
Today is a day of reflection for Americans. A day to mourn, to remember, to pay our respects. A time of prayer, healing, and forgiveness. We cannot undo the events of September 11th, 2001. We cannot unsee what transpired. But we can move forward stronger, carrying with us the dreams of those we lost. We can live our lives to the best of our ability, aspiring to be good people, and Americans that would make them proud; proud of their country's tenacity and resilience, so that their deaths would not be in vain. You cannot fight fire with fire. You can protect yourself against it and fight back to keep it at bay. But hate will survive, as inevitably as love will prevail. Love and time are the best defense we have. So in remembrance of 9/11/01, let us stand united, giving back love, respect, and gratitude to one another. This is the greatest gift we can bestow to all those affected by the tragic events that took place that fateful day.
Below is one of my favorite poems from William Wordsworth's Ode: Intimations of Immortality. The following video is this poem in the movie "A River Runs Through It" directed and narrated by Robert Redford, one of my favorite actors, and based on the novel of the same name by Norman Mclean. This poem says so eloquently what I feel when I reflect on life's tragedies. I think it is particularly appropriate for this day.
"...Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass,
of glory in the flower; we will grieve not, rather find
strength in what remains behind;
In the primal sympathy which having been must ever be;
In the soothing thoughts that spring out of human suffering;
... In the faith that looks through death...
Thanks to the human heart by which we live
Thanks to its tenderness, its joys, and fears
To me the meanest flower that blows, can give thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears.”
These photos below are from the 9/11 Memorial in New York City. They were taken during a ceremony on 9/11/11 honoring the fallen men and women who lost their lives to the terrorist attacks. The Memorial consists of a beautiful park where people can come and pay their respects. Diagonal from each other on both sides are two footprints of the Twin Towers. They are cascading, continuous waterfalls that seem to fall into a bottomless well. Lining each side of the memorial waterfalls are the names of those who lost their lives. The flowing of water reminds us that the spirit of life is eternal and goes on. It is symbolic of strength, purity, and grace. NEVER FORGOTTEN.
Today is a day of reflection for Americans. A day to mourn, to remember, to pay our respects. A time of prayer, healing, and forgiveness. We cannot undo the events of September 11th, 2001. We cannot unsee what transpired. But we can move forward stronger, carrying with us the dreams of those we lost. We can live our lives to the best of our ability, aspiring to be good people, and Americans that would make them proud; proud of their country's tenacity and resilience, so that their deaths would not be in vain. You cannot fight fire with fire. You can protect yourself against it and fight back to keep it at bay. But hate will survive, as inevitably as love will prevail. Love and time are the best defense we have. So in remembrance of 9/11/01, let us stand united, giving back love, respect, and gratitude to one another. This is the greatest gift we can bestow to all those affected by the tragic events that took place that fateful day.
Below is one of my favorite poems from William Wordsworth's Ode: Intimations of Immortality. The following video is this poem in the movie "A River Runs Through It" directed and narrated by Robert Redford, one of my favorite actors, and based on the novel of the same name by Norman Mclean. This poem says so eloquently what I feel when I reflect on life's tragedies. I think it is particularly appropriate for this day.
"...Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass,
of glory in the flower; we will grieve not, rather find
strength in what remains behind;
In the primal sympathy which having been must ever be;
In the soothing thoughts that spring out of human suffering;
... In the faith that looks through death...
Thanks to the human heart by which we live
Thanks to its tenderness, its joys, and fears
To me the meanest flower that blows, can give thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears.”
These photos below are from the 9/11 Memorial in New York City. They were taken during a ceremony on 9/11/11 honoring the fallen men and women who lost their lives to the terrorist attacks. The Memorial consists of a beautiful park where people can come and pay their respects. Diagonal from each other on both sides are two footprints of the Twin Towers. They are cascading, continuous waterfalls that seem to fall into a bottomless well. Lining each side of the memorial waterfalls are the names of those who lost their lives. The flowing of water reminds us that the spirit of life is eternal and goes on. It is symbolic of strength, purity, and grace. NEVER FORGOTTEN.
I lost a friend on 9/11. We corresponded just before his office and tower were hit. He went to the roof and never made it back.
ReplyDeleteHe left behind 4 children and a wife.
Good post. I was filled with rage after the incident.
Best,
Bobby
I'm so sorry Bobby. That's awful. I am glad you were able to contact him before his building was hit. It was a senseless, terrible thing that happened. To leave behind a family with so many children is so sad. I think they did a good job with the memorial, though it took forever to build, but it is beautiful and the museum is open now, I believe. I'd really to go see it. I drove to New York the weekend after 9/11 to find a friend of mine I was unable to reach and to see what had happened. I went down to ground zero, it was like being on a movie set, surreal, and I then I went to central park where people were posting pictures of missing loved ones and I have never felt so bewildered. Thanks for the comment. Hope all is well:)
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