Lest we forget...

TWO THOUSAND ONE, NINE ELEVEN (2001-911)

Two thousand one, nine eleven
Three thousand plus arrive in heaven
As they pass through the gate,
Thousands more appear in wait
A bearded man with stovepipe hat
Steps forward saying, "Lets sit, lets chat."

They settle down in seats of clouds
A man named Martin shouts out proud
"I have a dream!" and once he did
The Newcomer said, "Your dream still lives."

Groups of soldiers in blue and gray
Others in khaki, and green then say
"We're from Bull Run, Yorktown, the Maine"
The Newcomer said, "You died not in vain."

From a man on sticks one could hear
"The only thing we have to fear..."
The Newcomer said, "We know the rest,
Trust us sir, we've passed that test."

"Courage doesn't hide in caves
You can't bury freedom, in a grave,"
The Newcomers had heard this voice before
A distinct Yankees twang from Hyannisport shores

A silence fell within the mist
Somehow the Newcomer knew that this
Meant time had come for her to say
What was in the hearts of the five thousand plus that day

"Back on Earth, we wrote reports,
Watched our children play in sports
Worked our gardens, sang our songs
Went to church and clipped coupons
We smiled, we laughed, we cried, we fought
Unlike you, great we're not"

The tall man in the stovepipe hat
Stood and said, "Don't talk like that!
Look at your country, look and see
You died for freedom, just like me"

Then, before them all appeared a scene
Of rubbled streets and twisted beams
Death, destruction, smoke and dust
And people working just 'cause they must

Hauling ash, lifting stones,
Knee deep in hell, but not alone
"Look! Blackman, Whiteman, Brownman, Yellowman
Side by side helping their fellow man!"

So said Martin, as he watched the scene
"Even from nightmares, can be born a dream."

Down below three firemen raised
The colors high into ashen haze
The soldiers above had seen it before
On Iwo Jima back in '45

The man on sticks studied everything closely
Then shared his perceptions on what he saw mostly
"I see pain, I see tears,
I see sorrow -- but I don't see fear."

"You left behind husbands and wives
Daughters and sons and so many lives
Are suffering now because of this wrong
But look very closely. You're not really gone.

All of those people, even those who've never met you
All of their lives, they'll never forget you
Don't you see what has happened?
Don't you see what you've done?
You've brought them together, together as one."

With that the man in the stovepipe hat said
"Take my hand," and from there he led
Three thousand plus heroes, Newcomers to heaven
On this day, two thousand one, nine eleven

Author UNKNOWN

I commemorate by hauling flammable liquids today. I have hauled HAZMAT since 9/11/01 and I always get a slight "targeted" feeling on this day. I imagine the boss will remind us to keep a weather eye out today.

I was down in the office on my computer (hey, just like right now!) and my wife was upstairs watching TV. She went to the top of the stairs and called my name. She never calls me by my real name unless she is mad or there is trouble, I wish she was just mad at me.

I remember today by flying our colors proudly as we do everyday. On that day that changed our lives forever, I was at the bank trying to do some important business for my mother, when the banker stopped me and said "Are you aware of what just happened in New York?" I knew she was shaken as we started our conversation, but didn't know why until she told me. I then went over to the bread store with tears in my eyes and watched their television as the second plane hit. From there, with tears streaming down my face, I went to have my oil changed and sobbed as I watched their television when the twin towers collapsed. By doing my "errands as planned," I was trying desperately to hold on to what I was quickly realizing was a world that didn't exist any longer and feeling like I was in a world that I wanted to hide from. I was very scared, even though I was way up in Northern Michigan. Today, as the morning news shows are full of remembrances, I cry again!

Tell someone you love them today. You may not have that chance again!

CQ

I listened to Howard Stern on Sirius today. They re-broadcasted the tape of when they were on the air. It p*ssed me off all over again, I was listening just as if it was happening again. I realized how much emotion I felt in 2001 and how I actually have lost touch with it in a way. Like I said, I am angry all over again.

In defense of Howard, they were very professional throughout the broadcast, they were about 4 miles away near Central Park. He kept saying how he probably shouldn't be on the air right now, hinting that there wasn't really anything funny to goof about but the fans kept asking him to stay on and he did, giving reports as they watched from the window and on TV.

I didn't have the tv on that morning until my hubby called saying he heard something on the news (he was driving truck at the time). I turned it on, told him a plane had hit one of the towers ... not thinking anything at the time but a very very serious accident. A short time later, all hell broke loose, I sat and cried ... terrified also that the U.S.A was under attack.

One of the fellows that died in the Pentagon was Max Beilke, the last soldier to leave Vietnam.

Beilke, who grew up on a farm near Alexandria (Minnesota) and graduated from Alexandria High School in 1950, was the subject of an Echo Press article many years ago because he was the last soldier to leave Vietnam. He was in charge of making sure soldiers were accounted for, and he waited until the last soldier in their compound had signed off before jotting down his own name and running for a helicopter.