The Maximum Vacation, Part VI

Day 7 - morning and early afternoon

We rolled out reasonably early from our hotel in Parkersburg, W. Va. without another thought in mind not to go to the first originally scheduled destination on our trip – the Flight 93 Memorial near Shanksville, Pa.
We essentially took the path we followed in to Parkersburg on Day 3 in reverse until we got to the Route (U.S. Highway) 219 North exit off Interstate 68 in Maryland, then made our way back into the Keystone State.
Here is a farmhouse along the way.

This is a sight we don’t see much of in the South – power-generating windmills.

We eventually found our way to the memorial, which is loaded with items left behind by visitors. Here are two photos illustrating the variety of things people decide to leave.

Amanda listened to the National Parks Service person as she told the basic story about Flight 93 – one of four aircraft hijacked on Sept. 11, 2001.
On this flight, people found out about the World Trade Center attacks and understood that this aircraft was part of the plan. Passengers and crew attempted a counterattack to retake the aircraft. Somehow and for some reason, the plane crashed into the patch of ground behind this fence marked with an American flag.

Officials believe the hijackers intended to fly the aircraft directly into either the White House or the nation’s Capitol. In other words, the steps the counter-attackers took prevented an already tragic day from getting much, much worse. To call them “heroes” is the right thing to do and so is honoring their sacrifices.
Amanda and I decided without speaking to each other that we needed to leave something behind.
Amanda wrote a message on the hat.

Then, Jadyn and I placed my favorite baseball cap on a little spot on the fence which makes up part of the temporary memorial.
May we long remember what the passengers and crew of Flight 93 did for our nation and its people.

After about a 45-50 minute stay at the memorial, we loaded back up, ate lunch in nearby Somerset, Pa. and headed for our next major stop on Day 7, which we’ll detail in the next post.

9-11 plus six

Today, I looked again at some video and thought about this day six years ago.
The memories and emotions came roaring back.
Some of the things I've come across either by viewing them in some form or thinking about them in my mind are:
The images of family and friends standing quietly behind Gov. George Pataki with fliers bearing their pictures and contact information.
The men and women who decided that jumping was better than burning alive.
The heroes and heroines who fought back on Flight 93 and somehow prevented what was sure to be more death and destruction.
The photo of a taxicab with a hole in its windshield from a light pole the aircraft flying in to the Pentagon knocked down.
I'm still left with the impression that acts like those we experienced on Sept. 11, 2001 can only be met with the sword.
I wish the Iraqi situation was a lot more clear and that an "exit strategy" was easy to achieve. I think we should redefine our goals in Iraq and begin a reasonable draw-down of forces, but in such a way as to not leave the impression that we consider the situation "lost."
Retreat from this fight should never be a motivation for reduction of forces - only that we've achieved a reasonable sense that we've done all we can to leave Iraq better off than we found it and our enemies in disarray and defeat.
We cannot back down from this fight. They've proven what they'll do when they see a moment of weakness.
We must remember this day for the rest of our lives and let it guide our nation's future actions as it relates to protecting its principles and most importantly, its people.

9/11 and AFA

"As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!"
Galatians 5:12 (NIV)
I was at a college ministry conference in Alabama about 15 years ago when I came across this verse and understood how Paul felt about those who were so adamant about circumcision as something that Christians should continue to do.
I was shocked that something so offense found its way into the Bible - I thought we just didn't talk about those kinds of things if we were "decent" Christians.
Sometimes, using or allowing strong language is appropriate under limited circumstances.
In recent days, the American Family Association has threatened a massive action against CBS stations who, in the coming days, re-air "9/11," the amazing documentary filmed as the horrific events of that day unfolded.
In this documentary, there are segments in which some of those pictured use foul language. I've seen much of this documentary and don't remember what words are said and in what context.
I can imagine the most upright of us uttering - uncontrollably - some pretty indecent words at the sights these men and women witnessed.
While I certainly agree our airwaves shouldn't be cluttered with filth, such as gratuitous sex, violence and language, these are genuine people sharing their raw emotions about a real event.
I've also felt the same way about "Saving Private Ryan." Though fictional in its basic storyline, it is historic fiction - a film using the device of a fictional character and set of circumstances to tell a real story - a story about courageous men who bled, fought and died for the freedom of this nation and others.
Soldiers cuss - it's a fact of life. That doesn't diminish their service one bit.
Many of those who answered the call to One and Two World Trade Center - unwittingly - gave their lives so that others may live. Our tendency is to sanitize and make things pretty which aren't.
Sept. 11, 2001 was, simultaneously, one of the darkest and most glorious days in this nation's history.
Frequent disclaimers should be sufficient warning to let "9/11" run as it was first assembled.
I say let it fly.

Where has the indignation gone?

It's buried under time, and certainly under the numbers of war dead, but there was a moment when this nation clamored to set the scales right by the imbalance created by Sept. 11, 2001.
Decisions were made on faulty intelligence - hopefully flawed by miscalulation than by intentional deceit - to unseat Saddam.
Sure, the protracted nature of things in Iraq give us a sense that we shouldn't have done anything.
Where would be now if we hadn't? Sure it sounds jingoistic to some ears, but should we have taken the passive approach and wait 'til someone struck again before going forward?
To second-guess the current situation in Iraq, in my view, is to Monday-morning-quarterback decisions which are three years old, and undermine the sacrifices our men and women have made.

It's a good day

Several people know that the due date of our expected child is Sept. 11.
Some have reacted that it's a terrible day to have a baby born on that date.
The likelihood the baby will come into this world then is remote.
But I beg to differ that it's a bad day for a good thing to happen.
We forget that all kinds of good things happened that day.
For a day, we forgot that we were black, white, Hispanic, etc.
For a day, we forgot that individuals weren't more important than people.
For a day, we forgot we were a divided nation.
For a day, we had dozens and dozens of heroes, many of whom aren't here with us today.
Too bad we've collectively forgotten what we forgot that day.
I've made a little disc - don't worry RIAA, it's not for sale - of songs and tracks (all paid for) relevant to the events of 9/11 and/or its aftermath - just to remind me that no matter how bad my day at work was, I've never had a day like that.
If the baby is born that day, I have a name in mind. Grandma doesn't like it but it will get strong consideration if she's born on 9/11. We'll just leave it at that for now, and that for all the bad that happened on that day nearly four years ago - it's a good day.