8 Years Later

For a week I thought about what I'd want to say on my annual post about 9/11 (can you believe it would have been my 5th year?). Ultimately, the most interesting thing I have to say is that I didn't really have anything interesting to say. Some might see that as emblematic of how quickly we've forgotten the dangers we face and how horrible 9/11 really was, but I see it as a healthy part of the healing process. I didn't feel compelled to search youtube for the worst videos I could find or revisit the photos. I didn't feel the need to cry this year. Even still, the subject almost surprised me in how it found its way into the talk I gave at church on Sunday (in our church, members take turns giving 15-20 minute lectures/sermons on various topics. Each person gets an opportunity every couple years depending on the size of their congregation). I shard my mom's axiom that "only good comes from God," to make the point that God doesn't cause the tragedies in our lives to teach us a lesson, although there are lessons to be learned in each tragedy and He is able to help us learn them. To some this might seem like splitting hairs, but it's an important distinction that liberates me from wanting to blame God for the bad things that happen to me.

If you're interested, you can read my previous 9/11 posts here: 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005.