9-11 Day of Service

September 11, 2001. We all remember where we were when we learned that terrorists had attacked our great nation. After being in the hallway at my locker, senior year of high school, I walked into my classroom and was frozen by the image that kept replaying on the television screen. No one was working. My teacher wasn't teaching. The bell that would normally ring, was silenced. Every television in the school was on, and the only sound to be heard was the echoes of news reporters, speculating as to what we were witnessing. We didn't understand. Even those of us who had never seen the Twin Towers or the Pentagon or who had never visited Pennsylvania, mourned the loss of those whose lives were so quickly taken away in callous acts of what boiled down to a lack of respect. In that moment, everyone realized that our lives would forever be changed. We also knew that September 11, would forever be a day of infamy.

It's been nine years now, but when I hear "September 11," my heart still drops. I am reminded of how the acts of a few can impact so many. This same realization, that "The acts of a few can impact so many" is what led me to volunteer this year on September 11. I joined forces with volunteers, mobilized by Greater DC Cares, to tackle one of over 50 projects throughout the D.C. Metro Area. At the Ayrlawn YMCA Program Center in Bethesda, we, persons from all over the country, who now reside in and around DC, pitched in to complete a variety of tasks ranging from repainting the outside curb and staining picnic benches and classroom furniture to replacing moldy ceiling tiles.

May we never forget how we felt nine years ago, and may we memorialize the lives of those who lost theirs in the tragic events of 9-11. May we respect others and allow our differences to unite us instead of dividing us. May we realize that life is about service and there are many ways, large and small, to serve. May we forever remember . . . .

Marie