Remembering 9/11

As I walked from breakfast to my Geology lab this morning, I was greeted by probably thousands of miniature United States flags that had been stuck in the ground overnight. The flags represent each life that was taken in the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, six years ago today. It was a powerful reminder of that horrific day, one that has left me thinking about how precious life is.

On the morning of September 11, 2001, I was on my way to school when the first plane flew into the World Trade Center. We were waiting to turn from East Loop onto Naperville Rd in Wheaton, with Klove playing in the car. They said that a plane had crashed into the WTC, but the information was sketchy at that point. As we got closer to school in St. Charles, we learned of another plane crashing into the other WTC tower, but the info was still not very clear as to the size of the planes. It was with this knowledge that I went through the school day. It was a weird day, it seemed as though my teacher was in and out of the classroom more than usual, but i did not really give it a second thought.

It was not until after school on the car ride home that I learned about the Pentagon had also been hit, and that another plane had crashed in Pennsylvania. The news reports were now very clear that the events had been acts of terrorism. When I we got back to our spacious (notice the sarcasm here) apartment in Wheaton, I turned on the TV and saw the devastation replayed over and over and over again. Those images will be burned in my mind forever. I remember thinking 'What on earth would cause someone to do something like this?" As the death toll rose and we learned who was behind the attack, the range of emotions that I was feeling was quite remarkable. In one moment I would feel deep sadness for the families of those who died, and in the next would feel anger towards the evil men behind the attacks.

9/11 is a day that causes an interesting paradox. In one sense, I will never forget what I saw and felt on that day, but then again I need to be reminded of those feelings every year on the anniversary. What 9/11 has taught me, more than anything else, is that we live in a fallen, broken world that needs Jesus. Jesus came to restore all things to God's original intent. As a Christian, I feel a weight of responsibility to fulfill the Great Commission and "make disciples of all nations." 9/11 is a reminder of just how far short we fall, because it is not just Islamic militants who perform evil in this world. It is everybody. Everybody needs to hear and experience the love of Christ. So we better get started , eh?