My friend and I decided to take a family vacation together. Our kids are similar ages, our husbands are friends, and we get along like sisters. What could be better? We picked September because everyone is back at school, it is more quiet, and the weather is still good and warm. We decided to head to Myrtle Beach. The husbands could play golf, we could sit on the beach or go to the pool, and the kids could have a fun time. When making plans we picked the week of September 8-15. A perfect week to enjoy some relaxing time with friends.
Our hotel ends up a close walk to souvenir shops and a Food Lion. We have a kitchen in the room because it is a 2 bedroom condo type place where people rent out their timeshares when not using them. We set up our rooms, get food and begin to enjoy our vacation. The guys play golf most of the weekend and into the first part of the week. We are okay with this as it was planned out. On Tuesday, my friend and I get the kids and head off for a walk while the guys enjoy another game of golf. First we hit the souvenir shop before the Food Lion. We are trying to hear the radio because something happened, but we could not figure out what. We tried to hear again at the grocery store. But, again, the radio was too low. We decided to go back to the room, have the kids go down for a nap and then check out the news. After all is accomplished, we turn on the Today Show. It is September 11, 2001.
Ten years to the week, I plan another family/friend vacation. I actually did not plan it that way. I latched onto a vacation that another friend of mine was planning. She was happy including us. Again, the husbands could play golf, our kids could play at the pool or at the beach, and we can enjoy ourselves. The kids are now old enough to go off and play without mom's eagle eye. It was relaxing and very peaceful. The sea breeze blowing in my hair, the ocean surf making music along the shore. Kids building sandcastles and forts and chasing the tide.
As Sunday, September 11, rolled around I could not stop thinking about that day ten years prior. I remember everything about that moment. Don't they say that in times of great tragedy you remember everything? Like Kennedy getting shot? Well, I am not old enough to remember that, but I do remember the day JFK Jr. and his wife died. I remember the Challenger and Columbia. And I remember the moments of personal tragedy. On this Sunday I was lying by the pool and remembering the moments leading up to 10 am on that Tuesday. And I was wondering how all of those families who lost a loved one were feeling and how they were coping with the anniversary. I imagine that none of them wanted to turn on the TV at any time to relive, over and over again, the day their lives changed forever. I don't know if anyone else was thinking about it. Brazil, and South America for that matter, is very far from the US. It does not feel real sometimes. It is like the riots you witness on TV in Tunisia or Egypt or Libya. You can say things like, It is a horrible movie that I can turn off and not have to watch. It is happening someplace else. It does not affect me.
Remembering the events of 9/11 and the aftermath have reminded me that I do not live in a bubble. The world is not in a better place after 10 years: the debt crisis worldwide, economic troubles, bombings, wars, droughts, famines, the list can go on and on. Most people will ask, "But what can I do about it?" I do not have the answer to that question. I don't think many people do. Plus, how do you show compassion to suffering neighbors when you are in trouble too? For a little while, after the chaos and before the vengeance, the world came together. We have seen it again after the Tsunami of 2004, and after the earthquake in Haiti in 2010. Why does it take a worldwide disaster to remember we are all brothers and sisters on this planet, and that everyone needs a helping hand? I doubt this will be answered in our world's lifetime.
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