Where were you 22 Years Ago on 9/11?

It has been twenty-two years since 9/11, and as we look back on one of the moments in my life I can remember exactly where I was, who I worked for, what I did, and how the country and city I worked near responded.

This is a blog I wrote about 9/11 22 years ago.  People say where were you?

It is not perfect. No Grammarly applied, no ChatGPT analysis to make it perfect, or even format improvements.  Because, as 9/11 should seem like yesterday, twenty-two years is not that long ago. I don't feel healed, and honestly not sure the country has either.

I am in Las Vegas for an IBM conference, something I have done numerous times since and before 9/11.

As Frank kindly drove me to DFW, we saw a sign on a Whataburger that said we remember 9/11.  I wonder if they remember 9/11 and the immediate aftermath.

A country in the horror of attacks that spanned more than the Twin Towers, as well as the Pentagon and Pennsylvania.  A country that forgot who was a Democrat or Republican.  A country that prayed and begged to be let into NYC to help search for survivors.  Crowds of people not to be a spectator at such horror but wanting to help and search.

A country that collectively tried to understand what would make these men hate us so much that they wanted to kill so many lives, including their own.  Their targets were places and buildings that housed such diversity, not just Americans but immigrants and professionals from other countries that reflected the best of this country and how diversity improves our lives.

A country that was grateful to a city that welcomed their beloved Democratic senator Hillary Clinton, Republican mayor Guliani, and Governor Pataki.  Forgetting the differences of the day because, after all, we were and are Americans.

I wonder if the person who put up the letters on the Whataburger sign was alive at the time.  I wonder, as they sit in a red state in the East of Texas do they wish for a kinder time right after 9/11 when we recognized our differences but came together as one United States to respond.

Or, is the statement of remembering 9/11 more about the military aftermath that led to the first Iraq war?  Is the statement more of a mad country wanting answers and wanting to attack those responsible? Is this more about defending America than finding peace in the world?

It wasn't the North vs. the South.  It wasn't comments about the liberals in NYC or Washington.  In fact, for one of the few times in my life, we were one united country.

I hope and wish in my heart we could go back to the civility and peace and love for one another that was the immediate aftermath.  

In these times where we seem to focus on our differences, are we truly that far apart? After all, we are Americans, and this country has a bright future if we embrace and learn to just love and be civil with one another. 

Wouldn't that be a great response to 9/11, after all?  To those who orchestrated such a hateful and violent act, the country learned to embrace, care, and love one another more and grow even stronger.

I remember where I was twenty-two years ago, and I won't forget!