Many of us 30 and older remember with clarity the day the towers fell. The place we first saw it, the mood in the room, the voice of the newscaster. Some were there, or had family there, and remember the loss and terror in a personal way. For some, the loss is with them everyday. It’s good to honor that grief through remembering and telling stories. 

In this reflection though, I want to focus more on how we remember than what we remember

When you remember 9/11, do you dwell on the unity or the fear? 

Do you remember the images of firefighters running into harms way, or healthcare providers driving through soot, or unfamiliar neighbors comforting each other? 

Or do you remember the fear that was struck in many Americans? The vulnerability which so easily turned into anxiety, which so easily turned to anger?

When you remember 9/11, do you move towards love or hate? 

Does your heart move towards those who lost loved ones, to those New Yorkers whose windows were broken and lives were shattered? Do you feel compassion for those who suffer PTSD to this day? 

Or do you feel hatred towards those who attacked? Do you hate those who hated us? Do you let your fear turn to rage?

In the days that followed, did your heart grow in love for neighbor or did it callous in hatred of enemy? 

When you remember 9/11, do you feel more sorrow for yourself or for your world? 

Do you bemoan the way your life changed - the longer TSA lines, the loss of security, the plummeting stock market? 

Or do you groan for this world - it’s instability and chaos, poverty and hunger, bigotry and hate? 

Who does your sorrow move towards- self or others?

How we remember is just as important as what we remember. How you remember will shape you.

If you remember with fear, you will become anxious, which tends to transform into anger.

If you remember with compassion, you will be filled with love and sorrow, gratitude and grief.

How will you remember 9/11? 

As Dr. King said,

“Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it.

Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it.

Hatred darkens life; love illumines it."