Remembering…

It’s that day. Truth is, I remember where I was in the morning on that day. If you were alive, I bet you do, too.

It was an ordinary day…

I was focused on getting my body back after my second child’s birth. Nearly six months later, I had to lose the baby weight. Two weeks of Tae Bo workouts in the basement, and I hadn’t missed a weekday yet.

The older boy would be three in just a couple weeks. He hopped on the couch and ran around the room while I tried to keep up with the workout moves. Every so often he threw punches and kicks like the man on the TV screen. The infant slept in his car seat; it rocked a little each time he stirred.

Dripping sweat, I shut off the VCR. A big glass of water and my morning coffee would help get my mommy brain started. An ordinary day.

And then it wasn’t.

"Hon’, have you seen what’s going on? Turn on the news!”

I saw Tony’s face. Something was really wrong. I fumbled with the remote, and then I saw the replay of the plane hitting the building. It replayed several times, and then the unthinkable happened. A second plane?!?

“What is happening?” I cried.

“I don’t know,” he said, his eyes glued to the screen.

“This can’t be real! They’re going to rescue all the people? The people are going to get out of those buildings. Right?”

We sat in disbelief. Three planes. A fourth? Thousands of lives forever changed.

The toddler watched until he was bored and hungry. The boys wanted their mid-morning snack. My husband and I couldn’t tear ourselves away from the replay images. We weren’t the only ones.

I had to care for my boys. My husband tried to figure out what was happening to a city…and our nation.

Then…

Collective trauma. The entire nation plunged into it. Replays of video over and over on every channel deeply etched terrible events into every viewer’s mind. To-the-minute reports only captivated every set of eyes, every mind, every heart. Every network. The same images. No escape.

Terror and terrorism had new meaning.

I remember.

Many in our nation still remember.

And now…

Truth is, we swim in similar waters as a nation right now. Today.

The media rushes to put events and images in front of our eyes. Social media underpins the insanity. The news is fast and furious. Every report is more important and carries bigger hype than the last. The onslaught of news jumpstarts us to make an immediate judgement. The latest news will most definitely ruin our life or someone else’s. We have to act in a particular way. Right now.

And everything depends on the source and the “spin.” How could we not act? How could our emotions not be fired up?

9-11

The 9-11 media fueled “patriotic hatred” at its worst, and unity at its best. The same images replayed on every network. The narrative was the same. No escape.

Carefully chosen images designed to widen the chasm between Americans and the culture taking responsibility for the terrorism on 9-11. Not everyone of that other “culture” was responsible. The children shown celebrating the terrible death and destruction in New York were trained to think that way.

Americans immediately cared about the devastating loss of life. Emotional support and practical resources were sent. That was good and right.

These days

Today our own citizens dismantle communities. Politicians are in the hot seat (whether they belong there or not), and the grandstanding in an election year is overwhelming. The political aisle is a war zone. The cities are war zones. Neighbors’ relations are tense.

The media highlights news stories with purpose—or is that an agenda? Video after video fitting the narrative hits the news cycle. We see what the outlets want us to see. The cherry-picked snippets replay, begging viewers to rush to judgement and often omitting backstory, facts, figures, or contrary narrative.

Along these lines…and so many lives.

Party lines. Thin blue lines. Protesting lines. Welfare lines.

Wealthy lives. Poor lives.

Working lives. Out-of-work lives.

Healthy lives. Slightly-sick lives. Deathly-sick lives.

Black, brown, red, yellow, and white lives.

Adult lives. Child lives. Pre-born lives.

Endangered lives.

This can’t be normal!

Tell me, what part of this “new normal” could possibly be genuinely normal? The majority of our country is in collective trauma.

It’s happening again. “Same song, second verse. Could get better but…”

As we remember 9-11, we would do well to learn from it. We would do well to love others, serve them, and unify around the right things. We would do better to think critically so we don’t fall into a collective and a cycle that will ruin our hearts.

I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days… Deuteronomy 29b-30c

Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 1 Peter 3:8 ESV