As I reflect back on the events of Sept. 11, several things run through my mind all at once. I vividly remember exactly where I was when I heard on the radio that an airplane had struck the World Trade Center. Like many people, at first I thought it was an accident. When I heard that the second tower had been hit and a third airplane had been hijacked in flight I thought to myself, "We are at war."
Being a Persian Gulf War veteran, I immediately started to think of my friends still serving their country. I wondered if the military was starting to activate. I was ready. I just needed to know where. My next thought came of my family. I called my wife to make sure that my family was all right.
I still didn't get the full impact of what had occurred until later in the day when I saw the video for the first time. I watched as the aircraft slammed into the second tower. I was speechless, angry and sympathetic all at once; several thousand lives had been affected by this terrible act. Thousands of children had been orphaned in a matter of minutes. No matter how hard I tried, I still couldn't stop thinking of the children, mainly because my daughter was born only 14 days before my deployment to Kuwait.
When I was in the desert during Operation Desert Storm, I received letters of support and sometimes got opportunities to read a newspaper that was several weeks old. There were always articles about the way communities and the nation were working together. Even in those very tumultuous times, I did not feel helpless. That is what Sept. 11 evoked in me -- a husband, a father and a veteran. I felt helpless.
But, like many Americans, I was able to draw strength from my friends and family and from the way in which our nation united. Sometimes as Americans we spend more time focusing on what's wrong with our country and ourselves and we give very little thought to our strengths. We as a people make America the best place in the world to live. Citizens of all backgrounds, nationalities and ethnic groups responded together as one, making us realize that what we have in common is far more important than our differences.
I hope that what we all take away from Sept. 11 is not just the tragedy. I hope we remember the unity and use it as a foundation to make a positive difference not only in this country but also around the world.
