Reflections on 9/11

Today is the anniversary of 9/11/01 when four planes hijacked by terrorists crashed into the World Trade Center buildings, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania after the passengers realized that their plane was headed to Washington, DC and they attacked the hijackers.  It was the first foreign attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor, and it was totally unexpected.  There was a great loss of American lives that day.  We must never forget this fateful day, nor the lives that were lost.  Many things changed in America after that day. 

Where were you when you heard the news about the planes crashing into the World Trade Center buildings?  I was working at the now-defunct Walnut Street Securities, a broker-dealer affiliated with MetLife.  My hours were 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM CST.  There were four TVs hanging from the ceiling at our reception area, which were tuned to the financial news channels.  When I got to work, the news channels were broadcasting the news about the plane that had hit the World Trade Center.  I went to my desk and clocked in, searching the Internet for any news or updates.  On the way back to my desk after getting my second cup of coffee, I looked up at the TVs and saw the second plane hit the other World Trade Center tower.  Everyone at work was in shock and no one was getting any work done anyway, so the powers that be let us go home at 11:00 AM.

I watched the TV all afternoon after I got home from work.  There was no Twitter or Facebook back then, so I had several browser windows open to news websites such as CNN, MSNBC and kept refreshing them to see if there was any updated news.  I and many others watched in horror on TV as the towers collapsed and people jumped from the buildings. I had a browser window open to the message board on RaptureReady.com, where my friends and I had a long thread going updating everyone on what was happening. 

Those people who died on 9/11 didn’t realize when they boarded those planes or when they went to work at the Pentagon and the World Trade Center buildings that they would not be coming home that day. Events like 9/11 should have us contemplating our eternal destination.  Tomorrow is not guaranteed, and your life could stop in the blink of an eye.  Make sure you know your eternal destination. Two thoughts on this – Hell is a hot, hot place and eternity is a long, long time.  The only other eternal destination is Heaven.  There is only one way to get to Heaven and that is through Jesus Christ, God’s only Son. If you would like to make Jesus Christ your Savior and assure your place in Heaven, please leave your contact information in a comment below and I will be glad to help you. 

And if you have the opportunity today, thank a first responder.  Many first responders lost their lives and/or became permanently injured or sick from rescuing people from the World Trade Center collapses.  These people could have chosen a different line of work but they did not, and for that, we should be grateful.  I’m thinking about my friends Jason Blum and Steve Cange, who are first responders, and I am thankful for their service. 

September 11 has now been designated a National Day of Service in memory and honor of those who lost their lives that day, but I think we should go one step further.  I think 9/11 should be designated a Federal holiday. Everyone should be off of work that day, not for holiday sales or party activities, but for solemn remembrance of that day and those who lost their lives.  We must make a conscious effort to never forget what happened on 9/11.  If we do forget, there is a real chance that the U.S. will be attacked again and you and/or I could be the victims this time. 

Thanks as always for reading!

Diane

The fruits of our labor

Today is the last day of Labor Day weekend.  This blog post is being posted this evening because it's the first free time I've had since returning home from the Labor Day family camp we attend every year.  I had to put everything away, and start the laundry. Thankfully, I didn't have to cook supper tonight.  Even on a day where you're supposed to not work, there is still work to do.

The first Labor Day parade was held on September 5, 1882, in New York City.  It was organized by various labor organizations under the supervision of the Central Labor Union of New York.  In 1894, Labor Day became an official Federal holiday.  The town in which I live still holds an annual Labor Day parade. The union members march in the parade and after the parade, there is a picnic for the union members and their families.

Most people, however, consider Labor Day weekend to be the last big party weekend of the summer.  They may take trips out of town and/or go camping, boating and drinking.  These folks probably don't think about the real meaning of Labor Day and what it represents.

Labor Day may have started in 1882, but the idea of enjoying the fruits of your labor was thought about a lot earlier than that.  In the book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon wrote several verses about work and how labor should be enjoyed.  Here are the verses in Ecclesiastes that reference labor:

Ecclesiastes 2:24 -  Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God.

Ecclesiastes 5:18 - Here is what I have seen: It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage.

Ecclesiastes 8:15 - So I commended enjoyment, because a man has nothing better under the sun than to eat, drink, and be merry; for this will remain with him in his labor all the days of his life which God gives him under the sun.

So enjoy the Labor Day holiday!  Thanks for reading and see you next time!

Diane

Bibliography:

Labor Day, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Day