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As the names of the fallen who left us on that crisp blue September morning are read aloud by family members, the true impact of a decade is seen, not in the building of the Freedom Tower, the rebirth of Ground Zero, or the beautiful fountains that are surrounded by the names of the loved ones lost, but in the faces, the breaking words, the strength through tears of all the survivors. But mostly, in the Children.
Watching these young children read names, ending with a tribute to their lost parent, grasps at the innermost of all of us. These children are, like the rest f us, 10 years older. They were infants, toddlers, youngsters. Those who were grade schoolers have now graduated, Those who were in middle school or high school have begun their careers and their own families. The loss to all of these children has been great, and we know that a great deal of their childhood was taken from them that day.
Two boys, 12 or 13, read names off together, and then both thanked their Dad’s, and told them how much they and their Mom’s and siblings missed them. What they lost, what they missed with their Dad, albeit a void filled by other family members, is best summed up in this story about Peter Negron, now 21, who captured the hearts of the nation at the 2nd 9/11 anniversary, and today hopes he has made his father proud:
When Peter Negron’s father, a Port Authority project manager, died in his office at the World Trade Center, the boy was only 11.
Immediately after the attacks, he was one of more than a thousand children left suddenly without a parent. His dad, Pete Negron, 34, worked on the 88th floor of WTC 1 on environmental issues. Living in Bergenfield, N.J., with his mother Leila, and 2-year-old brother, he spent that first Father’s Day of 2002 angry.
“I don’t want to talk to nobody, see nobody, do nothing,” he told a news reporter then. “I just want to go to the cemetery and say that I love him…”
Two years later, the thin 13-year-old stood in a dark suit, steeped with grief, to shakily read a poem in front of the whole nation. It was “Stars,” written by children’s author Deborah Chandra:
“I like the way they looked down from the sky / And didn’t seem to mind the way I cried / And didn’t say, ‘Now wipe away those tears,’ / Or, ‘Tell us, tell us what’s the matter here!’ / But shining through the dark they calmly stayed / And gently held me in their quiet way. / I felt them watching over me, each one / And let me cry and cry till I was done.”
Peter Negron, 13, reads the poem ‘Stars’ on Sept. 11, 2003, at the second anniversary of the WTC attacks in which …
Today the 21-year-old appeared again in front of the nation, and this time shared a message of strength, growth and reflection.
He spoke about how he’s tried to fill his father’s shoes for his brother Austin, who turned 12 on September 1.
“I try to teach him all the things my father taught me. How to catch a baseball, how to ride a bike,” and to work hard in school, he said.
He never stops missing his father in the important moments of life.
“I wish my dad had been there to teach me how to drive, ask a girl on a date, and see me graduate from high school,” he said, choking up. “And a hundred other things I can’t even begin to name.”
He said he’s learned more about his father since his death. “He cared about the earth, and our future. I know he wanted to make a difference,” he said. He wants to do the same.
“I have decided to become a forensic scientist,” he said. “I hope I can make my father proud of the young men me and my brother have become. I miss you so much, Dad.”
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/upshot/boy-read-poem-13-grown-135446727.html
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This is the real legacy, and the lasting memorial to what happened, to each of us on that Sepetmeber 11th. The legacy that from moments of terror, great sacrifice, and enduring pain, we forged ahead. We built a new day. The families have grown up, are growing up, and are called to their role in our future by the forces that have surrounded their lives. They will build their lives to be the true testament to their loved one….. their father or mother, their brother or sister, aunt, uncle or grandparent. For Peter Negron and his brother Austin, their father is gone but is a constant in their lives.
NYC Mayor Bloomberg says that religious leaders have no place in the ceremonies commemorating the 9/11 attacks. After all, its not like the terrorists who committed this heinous act were doing it under the guise of their religion!
He also does not have room for many of the First Responders. After all, they only risked all on that beautiful Tuesday morning, and lost much on that day. Many are suffering today the perils that they faced that day.
Now, just days before the 10th anniversary of 9/11, Bloomberg says we must get past the tagged name for the site where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center– Ground Zero.
From Reuters:
(Reuters) – People should stop calling the site of the September 11 attacks “Ground Zero,” New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said on Tuesday, urging Americans to move past a term long linked with the World Trade Center’s twin towers destruction.
“We will never forget the devastation of the area that came to be known as ground zero. Never. But the time has come to call those 16 acres what they are: The World Trade Center and the National September 11 Memorial and Museum,” Bloomberg said in a speech on the rebuilding of lower Manhattan.
Ground Zero originated as a term to describe the site of a nuclear explosion and later was used to refer to the point of any dramatic or violent event.
for full article: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/06/us-sept11-bloomberg-idUSTRE7855T420110906
‘MEET ME IN THE STAIRWELL’
You say you will never forget where you were when
you heard the news On September 11, 2001.
Neither will I.
I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room
with a man who called his wife to say ‘Good-Bye.’ I
held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the
peace to say, ‘Honey, I am not going to make it, but it
is OK..I am ready to go.’
I was with his wife when he called as she fed
breakfast to their children. I held her up as she
tried to understand his words and as she realized
he wasn’t coming home that night.
I was in the stairwell of the 23rd floor when a
woman cried out to Me for help. ‘I have been
knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!’ I said.
‘Of course I will show you the way home – only
believe in Me now.’
I was at the base of the building with the Priest
ministering to the injured and devastated souls.
I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He
heard my voice and answered.
I was on all four of those planes, in every seat,
with every prayer. I was with the crew as they
were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the
believers there, comforting and assuring them that their
faith has saved them.
I was in Texas , Virginia , California , Michigan , Afghanistan .
I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news.
Did you sense Me?
I want you to know that I saw every face. I knew
every name – though not all know Me. Some met Me
for the first time on the 86th floor.
Some sought Me with their last breath.
Some couldn’t hear Me calling to them through the
smoke and flames; ‘Come to Me… this way… take
my hand.’ Some chose, for the final time, to ignore Me.
But, I was there.
I did not place you in the Tower that day. You
may not know why, but I do.. However, if you were
there in that explosive moment in time, would you have
reached for Me?
Sept. 11, 2001, was not the end of the journey
for you . But someday your journey will end. And I
will be there for you as well. Seek Me now while I may
be found. Then, at any moment, you know you are
‘ready to go.’
I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.
God
It is beautiful spring afternoon, and time to get ready for a family weekend. After all, Mother’s Day is Sunday!
But then you look at the continuing deabcles that comprise and stem from Obama policies.
First, after saying that they would not release copies of our $328,000 photos of SCARCE FORCE ONE’s fly over Ground Zero and the Statue of Liberty, showing that Americans still have one eye on the sky at all times, Robert Glibb’s office released ONE single photo from the debacle. The ONE photo is presumably the LEAST offensive of the photo ops that they released.
Add to the release of ONE photo, Louis Caldera, the head of the White House Military Office, has become the scapegoat taking the fall for the SCARE FORCE ONE public relations disaster. The President asked for Mr. Caldera’s resignation. Could someone answer why Rahm Emanuel, who orchestrated the photo op, wasn’t asked for his resignation letter as well?
Then, noting that it has been 90 days since the proper state authority received our applications for our Concealed Weapons permit, a phone call was made to ask where the permit is. State LAW says that the applicant must receive the permit or reasons for denial of the permit within 90 days of the application being received. The staffer says first that any application received since January is not even in the system yet for processing. Then, according to the staffer, it will be at least 4-5 months before they are processed. The final statement, when they were reminded that the LAW says that they MUST issue the permit within 90 days, or state reasons “within the law” for the denial, we were told that it had been decided to SUSPEND the LAW !! Why the problem: the processing office has a MAJOR backlog due to the EXTREMELY high volume of new applications since November 4th, 2008 (Reminder: Election Day 2008– Change we can Believe In)!
Thus starts the Weekend!!
Sometimes, the written word just doesn’t have the same impact!!
