Thank you

I woke up to what I thought was the usual banter of djs on my clock radio, but I hit snooze before I could hear what they were actually saying.  Fast forward nine minutes, and this time when the alarm went off, I caught the words Airplane, and World Trade Center, and Unknown.

Strange, I thought.

I pulled out of sleep enough to really hear what was being said.

Then I launched out of bed and grabbed the TV remote, and turned it on just in time to see plane 2 hit.

Now I was hearing the words Attack, and Terrorism.

And War.

The phone rang, and I knew right away that it would be Todd (that's Mr. T, in case you hadn't heard).  You see, he had left the day before for Asia, on one of his many work trips.  He was in Japan, with no English news, and the wife of his friend translating newscasts and giving him updates in her very limited english.  He was hearing about unknown numbers of planes still in the air, of rumors of planes heading for the West Coast.  And did I mention that we lived two cities over from a nuclear power plant?  To say he was not happy is an understatement.  He was terrified.

As I told him what I knew, a plane hit the pentagon.  I was sick.

My brother-in-law called in a panic.  The last time he had talked to Todd was a week before.  Todd had been changing subway trains.  In the subway station below the World Trade Center.  His brother had no idea if he was home, or still in NYC, or on a plane.

My family was so lucky.  We lost no one personally that day.  But our country lost so much, and we all feel it.

I can't speak for everyone.  I can only say that we in my household will never, ever forget.  And we will never stop thanking every firefighter, paramedic, police officer, and military member that we see.  We do, you know.  Thank them when we see them.  And we teach our kids that freedom isn't free, and that it is thanks to amazing people that are willing to do what so many other people are not that we enjoy that freedom.

We teach our kids that we owe them our thanks.  Forever.