A GUT-CHECK FOR THIS NATION...
...9/11 is something that really will never go away...

So many words have been written about 9/11, and on this Tenth Anniversary, that gloom is still out there. After all this time, the video images of 9/11 coverage are still horrific, terrible, sad and maybe just a bit scary, too. This past year, Bin Laden got his. Perhaps loved ones left behind in the 9/11 aftermath found a bit of closure in that, although I don't really believe there is such a thing as 'closure'. Things never really close. We never lose the memories of tragedy on such a great scale.

But it has been Ten Years. The memories are bitter. But life doesn't stop. It can't stop. And maybe there is solace in that, for in returning to everyday life, all the bad things get pushed back, and somehow, people manage to carry on. The only thing I can compare it to is, perhaps, the Kennedy Assassination, some 48 years ago. That horrible event slips further and further back into the past, and after a while, the 'edge' of that awful time recedes further and further back in our minds.

Given several decades, the painful memories tend to not hurt as badly or cut so deep. The memory of 9/11 is unforgettable and I hope that as time passes by, that those who lost loved ones in that disaster will someday not hurt as badly as they do now, ten years after the fact. Hopefully, a tragedy such as this will strengthen our nation, making us more vigilant, especially where border traffic is concerned.

However, if 9/11's tragedy leads us to be safer as a nation, then not all will be lost. If we can become more aware of those who commit terrorist actions and what they do to prepare for another attack, then that's a good thing. And if the events that happened on 9/11 make all of us more understanding of our fellow citizens, perhaps this nation will be on the way to healing itself.

The JFK assassination happened 48 years ago. Although I was only ten years old when it happened; there was an undeniable presence of gloom and doom in the atmosphere. I could feel it. It was a bad time for our country, but, like 9/11, our country became a bit more united as we collectively had to do in the face of such grim tragedy. Of course we'll never forget, but like the JFK Assassination, so too will 9/11's harsh memories will cut a bit less deeply than it does now. And God bless everyone who lost family and friends on 9/11.