Remember

I was sitting in my 11th grade US History class when my friend Erin came in the classroom and said a plane had crashed into the World Trade Centers. At that time in my life I didn't know the WTC and the Twin Towers were one and the same so I didn't think much of it. My teacher turned on the TV and we began to watch everything unfold. Then class was over and the main topic of conversation was if we would get out of school early because the Pentagon had also been hit and that was 3 hours north of us, so of course every selfish teenager's thought was what kind of deal can we get out of this. The magnitude of this event just hadn't hit us yet.

The school day was over. I was supposed to get a haircut that night, but Mom said we weren't going anywhere that night because of everything going on. I remember being mad and throwing a fit about it. School pictures were coming up and I needed a haircut. Again, I didn't realize what our country was going through.

And then it started. The constant images of the planes, the ball of fire, the ash-covered city. (I don't think we turned off the news for 2 weeks straight.) That night, as we sat down to dinner, I asked if I could say the blessing over our meal. I don't think I ever did actually thank God for the food. Instead I cried. I cried and prayed for the families, the country, the President. It was too much for my 16 year old mind and heart to grasp and handle.

Now, ten years later, as my husband and I are raising a child in a "post 9/11" world, it still seems so surreal. I still tear up at every story. That sick feeling comes back into my throat when I see the images. And I'm reminded that we are a resilient country and that even through the hardest time known to any American, God has had His hand on us. Guiding us, comforting us, loving us. He is in control even when control can't be seen in the chaos. He is our strong tower. Our refuge.

So today, I pray. I pray that each person in our country would taste and see that the Lord is good and know that His love heals all wounds and strengthens every defeated heart. That when hard times come, God hasn't left us. If anything, He's holding us tighter as we walk through this crazy thing called life.