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Sunday, September 11, 2011

TRAGEDY HAS A LONG SHELF-LIFE_GHOST OF SAMUEL CLEMENS HERE_ ON 9 - 11


{"It is one of the mysteries of our nature that a man,

all unprepared,

can receive a thunder-stroke like that and live.

There is but one reasonable explanation of it.

The intellect is stunned by the shock

and but gropingly gathers the meaning of the words.

The power to realize their full import is mercifully lacking."

- Mark Twain.}

Everybody seems to want to have their say on September 11th today. I ... I almost could not bring myself to speak on it. Not on this day.

The dark winds of the Shadowlands are filled with the wailing of the lost souls remembering the horror, panic, and fear of their dying.

The shadows will soon be quiet. I look about the land of the living and know most will have shrugged off the remembrance aside by tomorrow.

Old news. Bills to pay. Lives to live.

There is too much tragedy each heartbeat of each day for us to hold onto any one moment of keening for long.

The world is drowning in tragedy.

The rain forests are still burning, and our attention span has turned off the smoke detectors.

An African child's emancipated face wails on our TV screen, and we change the channel.

The Twin Towers were gutted by planes filled with screaming passengers.

And today a mosque for the faith whose zealots masterminded the mass murder is being erected right by the site.

Each day we pass individuals who are struggling with their own private 9-11, and we hurry by, perhaps irritated by their slow pace or distant, inward directed eyes.

We honor the valiant, the orphaned, and the murdered of 9-11 when we remember that tragedy has a very long shelf-life

and act with compassion towards each person we meet, knowing that everyone is having a harder time than they appear.
***


13 comments:

  1. Everyone should remember that last sentence.

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  2. And there are those who did not want to go after the people responsible.

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  3. Well said Roland...

    Thank you for your insights. We all have our crosses to bear, but we still need to remember.

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  4. Thanks, Sarah :
    Yes, the best tribute to the fallen is a life lived well and lovingly.

    Walter Knight :
    There will always be those who choose to placate instead of acting wisely and decisively, Roland

    Michael :
    Yes, each of us bear our silent, invisible wounds -- but they should offer us added insight to act compassionately. Have a great new week, Roland

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  5. Thanks, Eliza :
    There are some moments, some hurts, that go beyond the capacity of words to do justice to. Roland

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  6. Thanks for the tribute Roland.

    ......dhole

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  7. Thanks, Donna, for commenting. Sometimes it feels as if I'm playing to an empty house! Well, the ghost of Mark Twain always listens ... then snaps a quip! LOL. Tomorrow he, Stephen King, and I play poker at Meilori's while discussing why horror is popular. Roland

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  8. Thanks, Elliot :
    Your words mean a lot to a weary blood courier. Yes, I am still at work. Sigh. One day my writing will take off -- or my princess will come! LOL. Roland

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  9. Hi Roland .. loved this post .. perhaps we should be kinder to the Muslims as they are not all bad - we can live with mixed faiths.

    We had Songs of Praise here in the UK and two young friends one black, English and Christian, the other paler and Muslim - both spoke impeccable English .. and expressed their friendship, love and comradeship for each others' ways of life .. they were great friends. It's tolerance and peace ..

    I do agree perhaps the siting of the new mosque is probably not appropriate and before the anger overflowed into a furore: the siting could have been moved to avoid the extra challenges it's now presenting. Too many never look at all the sides of a story .. and pass racist, hateful comments without ever fully understanding.

    Thanks - Hilary

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  10. Chilling to watch that video again, ten years later. Your words are very moving, Roland. Life goes on, it has to, or we will drown in sadness.

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