E Pluribus Unum

Giving into the tears that present themselves after I’ve watched just a minute or two of any of the 9/11 commemorations being held today isn’t easy for me. I don’t like giving the enemy so many years of satisfaction.

In a perfect world we’d all be John Wayne. Able to exorcise our grief through pure action without putting our wounds on display for all to see. But I’m not made of that mythical exterior and it takes only a couple of names read by a still grieving family member from any of these ceremonies to tear open my alpha resolve and push my emotions to my sleeve.

Listen to the list of victims from New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C. and it won’t take long to marvel at the churning ethnic blend represented by this virtual cemetery of the honored. That random mix of people frozen together in time speak to the extraordinary nature of the average life in this country. That freeze-frame snapshot captures who we are; refugees from the rest of the world that disagree on much, but agree on the right to pursue those constitutional ideals- Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.

I have no wish to be political on this solemn day of remembering. We were all attacked five years ago, regardless of our personal religious or political affiliations. After all, the enemy sees no discernible difference between the blue or red states. We are all infidels in their eyes and will remain so until we bow to their demands.

Our enemy knows something about us that we’ve thus far failed to grasp. We are more alike than we think. If you doubt it- just listen to the names. We are all of those cultures and colors mixed together. We might be wise to begin celebrating it- as much as our enemy hates it.

May the memory of the lost live forever... they are us.