Angels Manning Heaven’s Trading Floors — Never Forget 9-11-01
Dear QI & Extended Family,
It’s not closure. And time does not heal all wounds. As for forgiveness, forget that. But there is some semblance of solace in circles closing around the gaping hole in my heart that remains from 9/11. In thinking about the idea of the number ‘23,’ I realized that many of the babies born to the more than 100 moms who were pregnant when their husbands made the ultimate sacrifice that morning are today four years ahead of my second born, who just graduated from high school. That means they’ve just experienced one more milestone – that of walking across the stage to accept their college diplomas -- without their fathers in the audience.
In the case of one young man, many circles will close this Saturday. By way of background for new clients of QI, you may not know that I’m an irrepressible and unreasonable college football freak. That said, on January 2, 2002, Ronald Milam Jr. was born, just short of four months after the death of his father, who died on 9/11 at the Pentagon. The Redshirt Senior at the University of Texas at San Antonio, my first college alma mater, will start against my second alma mater, the University of Texas at Austin at 7 pm ET Saturday in a U.S. football smackdown. Watching Ron live will be one of the few moments of comfort I’ve had since those buildings were felled 23 years ago today.
As for the United States of America its 23-year-olds are inheriting, in a September 9, 2024, poll, 67% of survey respondents do not think that one of its presidential candidates is “prepared to accept the outcome of the presidential election as legitimate.” Forget the name of the one who will be doing the fresh rejecting. What does it say that four years after one rejected election, most Americans assume that same man will reject the outcome of the election if the outcome is not in his favor? After last night’s debate, with a complete absence of politics and partisanship tainting my take, and critically, after his most cogent and mature performance in his history, which is frightening in and of itself, it’s clear that the worst-case scenario is upon us. How will his Jim Jones base accept, or not, the public’s verdict?
To answer the question posed, from the perspective of a card-carrying Republican and a lifelong fiscal conservative, the answer is the public has been muted. We patriots are silenced. We have no voice. I ask you, is that the legacy the children and grandchildren of the 2,977 Americans who lost their lives 23 years ago today merit? Do they not deserve more?
Few, if any, will truly stop today to mourn. Identify me as the exception. I’m incapable of being today. My oldest, my sweet William Cecil, will call me this morning and say, “I’m sorry, Mom.” He was born May 10, 2004, nearly three years after 9/11. But his first memories of his mom going away were of me disappearing into my documentary cave every September 11th of his youth, the sole day he recalls his father explaining why mom had disappeared.
I will never allow anything but memories of my Angels to supersede every other subject matter on this day. I read my own words every 9/11. You should too.
#NeverForget
Danielle