I remember what I was doing 10 years ago when I first heard about the September 11th attacks. I was at work listening to the radio at my desk, when I heard a news announcement "there's a report of a plane flying into one of the World Trade Center towers." The guy said something about how a plane once flew into the Empire State Building during World War II so no one should be alarmed. But, within a few minutes the guy said "wait a second, there's another report of another plane..." I got up and went to our conference room and turned on the TV. They were already showing the first video released of a plane hitting one of the towers. A few minutes later the video of the second plane hitting the other tower started running. I went to get my boss and other co-workers to show them what I was watching. The rest of the day is a blur now.
As I look back, I like to think about the news of heroic feats that were the work of ordinary Americans. The actions of those in local offices and positions of government: police officers, firefighters and regular citizens risked their lives to save the lives of others. These stories were rays of hope amid hour after hour of bad news. The truth is that government failed all of us that day. Ordinary Americans made the difference. Remember them this weekend.
