September 11, 2001. Can it really be 10 years? The images branded onto our minds that day  seem fresh, and the feelings of grief, fear, and anger that the anniversary stirs up might still be raw. Perhaps this year we need to also focus on some of the stories that are healing, are good. Maybe then we can transform our bad memories into hope and positive thoughts and actions.

As I look back at the lessons learned from 9/11 here in New York City, I remember how critical it was for us to join with others to lick our wounds, to grieve our losses, to begin the process of healing. Without much thought, we New Yorkers were galvanized to reach out to each other in our suffering. Our ‘healing’ was enhanced because we felt a sense of camaraderie – not only with each other, but with people throughout the world who felt like an extension of our community. An extraordinary spirit emerged from this tragedy. Volunteers from all parts of the planet came forth from every culture, ethnic group, class, and profession. Everyone volunteered in some way by searching for the missing, carrying buckets of water, handing out food and coffee, writing letters of encouragement, raising money for the victims.

We were touched by the community spirit that took over the City, a place that is often called detached, impersonal. People felt free to cry and express their feelings in parks, train stations, on the street. Strangers reached out and embraced one another in their pain. Every day people stood along the streets cheering the rescue workers as they entered and left the site of the ruins yelling, ‘We support you. Never give up.’ We experienced a new-found respect and a feeling of compassion for all peoples. The outpouring of support from around the world was enormous. Community agencies pooled their resources and worked as a team so things were done well for those who had been traumatized. Churches, synagogues, mosques, and temples learned what it meant to be communities of service and turned themselves into houses of hospitality often opening their doors 24 hours a day. A firefighter told me, ‘Strangers have become a real community to one another because we’ve shared so much.’ And we learned that although we could not change the terrible things that had happened, we could change how we responded to them.

I feel a sense of hope as I recall all of that. Today I received an email from Dermod McCarthy, a dear friend in Ireland, who wrote: ‘The whole world is preparing to join in prayer with New York and Washington on Sunday morning. I want to send my own support and solidarity in memory of that day. I will feel very close to all of you and I will be praying with you and standing beside all of you in spirit as you recall both the horrors and the blessings of the days following September 11, 2001.’

Yes, I believe it is time for us to recall the stories that give us hope, to reach out to one another, to reclaim our ability to dream again. We do have a choice: to be bitter or to be better. I pray that we will have the courage to choose to be better.

Beloved God, who never abandons us, we thank you for standing by us even when we feel afraid, angry, full of sorrow. On this 10-year anniversary of 9/11, we ask you to help us turn our bitter thoughts into positive options, new life, new hope. May we remember that we do have choices. May we have the will and the courage to be better people. Amen.

Joy Carol

www.joycarol.com