The Yokosuka Gazette, Part I

It's 9/11 in Japan.  Flags are at half mast.  When I went into the vehicle registration office this morning, I went to write the date on the paperwork and said "Oh...it's Sepember 11th", and the Japanese woman behind the desk paused and said "I'm sorry".

I was trying to explain to the kids the other night how 9/11 is my generation's "JFK".  Just as my parents and their generation will always remember where they were and what was happening when JFK was shot, we will always remember the instant our world was changed.  The anger, the fear, the sadness and uncertainty.

I was on my way to class when the first news reports started trickling in.  I was on the shuttle bus from the farthest parking lot (read: free) up to campus to my classroom when NPR started saying something about reports that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center.  We had class for that one period, but after that, everyone either went back home or congregated in places with TVs and watched as the news steadily got worse and worse.  I went home and turned on the news and watched as well, watched until I couldn't stand it anymore.

Josiah watched the footage in his class today.  I know that he will have questions later and I hope I have the answers for him.  I'm praying that it was stock footage of the crashes and not of the people who jumped for their lives or the footage from inside where you can hear the bodies hitting the pavement outside the entryway.  The crashes are bad enough, startling, unbelievable, even as you watch the plane pass into the building your mind races to comprehend.  Even though we all know the outcome, I still have a moment of suspended disbelief.

Prayers for those left behind, left to bear this wound every day.  Prayers for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of this country and for their loved ones.  Prayers for those who continue to fight for our safety.  Prayers for those who have been damaged by the wars against terrorism, men and women who will never be whole again or who will struggle forever with their wartime demons. Prayers for our decision makers as they contemplate starting another war against terrorism while our military struggles beneath the crippling weight of budget cuts and sequestration.

Prayers for a nation, that for one moment, we unite and remember.  Never forget!