Day of Reflection

September 11, 2010

I'm addicted to facebook. I don't want to be. Sometimes I try to walk away for a day or two to prove to myself that I can, the same way I give up caffeine for a while just to prove that I can. But this morning, I had absolutely no desire to harvest my crops or chat with old friends or snoop into the lives of other people. I didn't log onto facebook until after the coverage from Ground Zero of the reading of the names. And even then I just wasn't into it. I saw a link to a video tribute set to the song "Have You Forgotten?". I shared the link, too, then logged off facebook until a few minutes ago. When I got back on, my sweet, adorable, honest cousin had commented on my link, something along the lines of "No, I haven't forgotten, but I don't need these grim images to remind me." I was taken aback, and thought I'd better watch the whole video. So, I did. There were images of bodies in midair, people who had flung themselves from the top floors of the Trade Center rather than face whatever horror was up there. The images were in poor taste, and I feel terrible that I was a party to sharing it on facebook. So I deleted the link from my profile and spent some time thinking about what I want to remember about September 11.

It's time to heal. That's how I feel. It was a tragic, horrific, devastating day in the history of the United States of America. The repercussions of that day are being felt now, nearly a decade later, and will continue to be felt for decades to come. I shed tears every year when I am reminded of the horror of that day. But the horror continues for innocent people day after day; soldiers and civilians continue to die daily as a result of September 11, 2001. Those who were physically responsible for the devastation of that day are dead. They can never be punished. So we continue to try and end terrorism on a global level. Will we EVER end terrorism? Of course not. Terrorists believe they are on a mission from God, the same way millions of others believe they are on a mission from God in many different ways. I'm weary of war. I'm weary of partisanism. I'm weary of discord. Michelle Obama and Laura Bush were together in Pennsylvania this morning, and when Fox News cut away from Mrs Obama's speech, I was upset. She had brought me to tears with her thoughtful words and the people on "my side" cut away, much the way CNN probably cut away from Laura Bush. I'm tired of this. Is Barack Obama a Muslim or a Christian? Is there going to be a Mosque near Ground Zero? Who cares? Ted Bundy was a Mormon. Does that mean no Mormon Temple should ever be built near a college campus? I don't blame every Muslim for the choices of a few.

I'm home alone tonight, watching "United 93"and "World Trade Center"on DVD. So I went to 7-11 for a diet dr pepper. As I pulled into the parking lot, I had the disrespectful thought that here I was, supporting the Middle Eastern owners of 7-11 on 9-11. Sure enough, the guy behind the counter was of Middle Eastern descent. There was a cute family in front of me in line, and the little 2 year old boy grabbed some candy from the bottom shelf. The Mom and Dad looked at each other, and shook their heads, and I knew they didn't have enough money for the candy. The (Muslim?) guy behind the counter said, "No, get the candy. I'll give you the coffee for free." Ah! And there it is. We are not Muslims or Mormons or Democrats or Republicans. We're humans. With faults and strengths, good and bad. Time to heal.

Thursday Night Lights

I LOVE watching Tyler play football this year! He's on the Juab JV squad, so his games are played on Thursday nights, and it's a great way to kick off the weekend:) Ty played both offensive and defensive line last night and he played SO WELL! The best game he's ever had, seriously. Juab beat Payson 21-6, and I was so proud of Ty:)

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I love living in a small town. If you go to the grocery store or gas station on game day, you'll see a variety of people in the newest Juab Football t-shirt, hoodie or hat. It's a big fundraiser every year, and the boys have to be pretty competitive to get their 15 sales before the other football players beat them to it.

Last night at Ty's game, I looked around and saw some people who keep attending every sports event at the high school even though their kids have all graduated. I love that. Reminds me of little Bobby out in Grantsville, the most loyal Cowboys fan ever.

I saw people I actually haven't seen for a while, and was saddened to realize that I didn't recognize two people I've known for years. They've aged so much, they're not in the best health, and I couldn't help but think of them 10-15 years ago when they were full of energy, witty, funny and so much younger. I saw a lady that I thought was about my age holding a baby, and I asked Ashli if that was her grandchild. She laughed and said no, it was her baby, and that she is atleast ten years younger than me. Ugh!! I really do think I'm 29, don't I?

Ashli had her little dog there at the game, and everyone from little 3 year old children to grandmas and grandpas stopped to pet her and subsequently talk with me and Ashli for a few minutes. Ashli is amazed at how many people here in Utah say "Don't you have kids yet?" after she has only been married a year! It's definitely the required next step around here, and apparently the sooner the better, if the joking with her in the football stands is any indication.

I love walking out the gates and having people stop to tell me what great kids I have. Two different parents stopped me last night to tell me how glad they are that Tyler hangs out with their kids. Awe.. I can't take any credit for what a great kid he is, but I'd trade any amount of money and success to hear that kind of thing about the kids raised in our home:)

And most of all, I love that Kaitlyn ran to catch me and give me a hug as I was leaving the game. Kids are SO awesome! And the kids in this town are especially amazing. I know there are problems, but you just don't see the cliques and stuff that go on in other towns. One of the freshmen football players was sitting in front of us during the JV game, and the rest of the freshmen team called over to him to come sit with them. Ah.. love to see stuff like that.