The Eleventh Day of September

It's the ten year anniversary of 9/11. I haven't watched any of the news coverage. I don't exactly want to relive those moments of fear and confusion and sympathy. I'm a very lucky person. I wasn't there. I didn't get hurt. I didn't know anyone that was or did. But I can't help but feel awful when reading or hearing stories about those that lost either their lives or their loved ones that day.

I do recall how things changed. There really was a sense of unity in this country. We had put aside our differences and realized that life is too short to argue over pettiness. How could we be upset over something trite knowing that there were bodies in the rubble at ground zero.

But that perspective eventually changed. People went back to being jerks to each other. We lost our humility and regained our arrogance, and this country is more divided than ever. It honestly feels like our nation is acting like two rival sports squads, battling only because they wear jerseys of differing colors. When did they forget that we're on the same team?

I try not to get too upset over all that. Barring another national tragedy, nothing will change. The only thing I can do is vow to live my own life with compassion, kindness, and tolerance for others. And maybe on the anniversary of this devastating event, a few others will come to that realization and do the same.