Nine Eleven - remembered

I will do a foodie/grill/grilling post later in the day. But not now.

Today is the day we pause to remember that terrible time. We all have stories and remember where we were on that morning. I was in Las Vegas with many of my best friends celebrating (recovering from celebrating the night before) a life changing event (not a marriage). Having my friends around eased the pain we all felt. In a much too quick succession, my three best friends passed away over the next few years. In a small way, I will always associate those lost friends with that day.

It is hard to explain the twists and turns my life took for me to be in the place I am. Someday I will launch into a LOOOONG post of how I got where I am. But, I took the photo above in a small park next to the site of the World Trade Center towers. The cross in the background is the famous girders that remained when the debris had been removed. I happened to be hosting a week long vacation for 18 people in New York City a year after the towers fell. One of those 18 is a priest. Father Hugh held a non-denominational Catholic Memorial Mass (don't ask) at the site. It will always be one of the most moving experiences of my life. Often, mass attendees are asked to pray for innocent souls that have been taken from us. Often when i do I remember specifically those that died that day, and those that continue to pay the ultimate price for our freedom and protections. I also remember my three friends that shared that special time in my life, but that I can not call up and ask them to a BBQ.

Take a moment, think about the people we have lost and also think about the people still in our life.

I will spend a portion of my morning remembering John, Ray and Jim