9/11

One week ago, September 11th, 2016, was the anniversary of 9/11. As I strolled up the Eastside of Manhattan, scanning the beautiful, cloudless sky, I recalled how September 11th, 15 years prior, was also a day of beautiful weather, yet a terror that changed the face of our definition of safety forever. At 8:45, 15 years prior, a plane struck the north tower. Those attacks destroyed the lives of so many people, including the family members who lost sons, daughters, and parents in the destruction of our beloved towers. But another message emerged from the ashes and the aftermath: that the United States is strong, a wonderful tapestry of many foreign enclaves, a nation of immigrants and many strong and powerful voices. Our voices will never betray us, and we will always stand tall and proud. What happened was terrible and destructive, but the spirit of our nation will never, ever be buried. Has the landscape of fear changed? Absolutely! But you cannot keep a generation down. My prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones in this terrible tragedy!