"LEST WE FORGET: REFLECTIONS ON 9/11"
by Megan, a Catholic College Student in Chicago, Illinois

On the Eve of September 11, 2003: Lest We Forget

At the end of August, I was at the site of another memorial of another national tragedy. As I looked down into the crystal clear waters of Pearl Harbor at the remnants of the USS Arizona, I couldn't help but think of 9/11. And as I watched the images of the Japanese fighter planes bombing the naval base and the battleships, I could not help but remember 9/11. I was not alive during Pearl Harbor--so 9/11 is like my generation's Pearl Harbor. And ironically it happened during the 60th anniversary year of that day.

I think about my generation. We're starved for lack of heroes. Our teenagers look to Madonna, Eminem, and Britney Spears as role models. Let us take this time to remember and honor real heroes, the firemen and other workers that gave their lives to help their fellow men in trouble. Let us remember them and the ultimate sacrifice they paid. Lest we forget.

I'm proud to be an American. I know that America has her faults and her sins. But I also see alot of good in the USA and that good was shown in the heroic examples of her citizens who showed remarkable unselfishness and courage in the face of danger. Let us not forget the sacrifice they paid. Let us pray for their souls, for all of the souls of the dead that day. Let us remember the courage that led the over 300 firemen to their deaths that day. God bless them. They are true heroes. They deserve to be honored and remembered. God have mercy on their souls and God have mercy on our land.

And, once, again, in my mind I go back to the crystal blue waters of Pearl Harbor and lay a flower on the waters of the tomb of those men who fell, remembering at the same time my generation's Pearl Harbor. Aloha and God be with you.