9/11 in a Foriegn land.
September 11, 20006.
Five years ago I did what just about the rest of the world did. I watched in horror as terrorists flew jet liners filled with men, women, and children into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. But my perspective was a bit different than most you'll hear. That's why I feel compelled to share this with you.
I was half a world away from my home in Idaho. I was living in Argentina. Amongst a people with whom I was just barely starting to be able to communicate with. I lived without my family. The only person that I had with me at the time was an assigned companion to help me with missionary efforts. He was an Argentine.
So on that morning. I had no family to turn to, no American's with whom I could discuss what was happening, No one that spoke English. Just friends from another land.
I'll always remember how it all happened. We left our apartment by 9:00 in the morning. After making a few visits we stopped by our church house. That's when I heard about the attack. A man approached me and told me that a plane had hit one of the towers. Perhaps it was just my poor spanish, but I didn't grasp the meaning of what he was telling me. In my mind I saw a small plane, perhaps out of control or caught in a glare hitting the building. I didn't suspect a terrorist attack in the least.
We left the church and made our way to a church members house that was kind enough to do our laundry. When we arrived a lady came in after us. She asked me if I was an American. I replied that I was. She then asked if I knew what was happening in my country at that moment. As a missionary, I didn't own a t.v. or a radio, or a computer. In fact I wasn't supposed to watch them or listen to them. So of course when she asked me that question my answer was no. She told me that I should turn on a T.V.
Well it was obvious something was happening. So I decided to break the rule and asked the owner of the house if I could take a look. I felt the same horror that everyone did as we watched the second plane hit. I don't know how long I watched. I had to strain to understand what the commentators were saying as they were of course in Spanish.
I remember that I cried. Knowing that my country was under attack. I understood that there were two more planes that had been hijacked. I wasn't allowed to call my family. And even if I had been I didn't know how to dial to the United States. So we just watched.
Finally I decided that I couldn't do that any longer. We said a prayer. It was my companion. The Argentine, a guy with whom I rarely got along with that said it. In that moment and in others that would follow. All barriers of race and nationality were dropped. We were brothers, he prayed for me as well as anyone that could have spoken English could have.
We left the house and attempted to work. But it was pointless. Not only were we both too worked up, shocked, and saddened by what happened. So were the people. Everyone was glued to their television sets. We found out about the Pentagon. My mind immediatly went to one of my missionary friends whose Dad worked in the Pentagon. I could only hope that he was alright. We found out about Flight 93 and how it had crashed in a feild.
Finally we admitted defeat and spent the rest of the day at a church members house, watching the news, trying to find out all the details. When our curfew arrived, all missionaries in their apartments by 9:30 each night, we went home and it was the first time I was able to talk to other Americans about the attack as our missionary roommates were both from the states as well. But it didn't matter that they were Americans. We all spoke in Spanish so we could include my companion.
Why am I talking about this? I just want to share something I learned that day and in the days that followed. We always hear about how everybody hates Americans. How they think that we are imperilaist pigs and such. I want to tell you that, that is not the truth. When those planes hit those Towers. I did not hear a single cat call or anyone say something snide about America getting hers.
Instead I recieved an outpouring of sympathy. It was well known to most in that community that I was an American. I had so many people express to me their deepest sympathies and love. They talked about how bad they felt for our country and our people. How they hoped that we would be able to recover from it and that they hoped that my family was alright.
People in other countries my disagree with our Government policies. But over all America still represents something to the World. It is the Land of Opportunity. I heard people worrying that it would be harder to obtain visas, and greencards in America now. That they wouldn't be able to go there as they had been hoping to.
America is bigger than any Presidential Administration. Any congressional majority. It's people are among the most optimistic, happy, and brightest on Earth. Less than 1% of the entire world's population "ever" have been able to enjoy the freedoms that we enjoy today. Think about that. We are more free than anyone has ever been.
Five years ago I learned that the American Spirit and Dream cannot be destroyed by cowardly attacks. I learned that we have people that care for us more than we know. And I learned to love a people in a forgein land.
One last thing. Today while I was making a delivery for my job. I overheard too women talking. They didn't know that I was listening in because they didn't know that I understand spanish. These two hispanic women were talking together. There conversation?
"I'm going to watch United 93 tonight."
"It's on video! I didn't know! I always wanted to see it."
"Yes I just bought it would you like to watch it with me?"
"I would love that! I heard it's such a sad movie, but that it's so good."
United 93 is a movie about the passengers of Flight 93 bravely sacrificing their own lives so the Terrorists couldn't carry out their plot to crash the plane into the Capital building or the Whitehouse. Two women, immigrants, watching a movie about one of the most tragic and heroic moments in our lifetimes.
America is great. No matter what language we speak.
God Bless.
Five years ago I did what just about the rest of the world did. I watched in horror as terrorists flew jet liners filled with men, women, and children into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. But my perspective was a bit different than most you'll hear. That's why I feel compelled to share this with you.
I was half a world away from my home in Idaho. I was living in Argentina. Amongst a people with whom I was just barely starting to be able to communicate with. I lived without my family. The only person that I had with me at the time was an assigned companion to help me with missionary efforts. He was an Argentine.
So on that morning. I had no family to turn to, no American's with whom I could discuss what was happening, No one that spoke English. Just friends from another land.
I'll always remember how it all happened. We left our apartment by 9:00 in the morning. After making a few visits we stopped by our church house. That's when I heard about the attack. A man approached me and told me that a plane had hit one of the towers. Perhaps it was just my poor spanish, but I didn't grasp the meaning of what he was telling me. In my mind I saw a small plane, perhaps out of control or caught in a glare hitting the building. I didn't suspect a terrorist attack in the least.
We left the church and made our way to a church members house that was kind enough to do our laundry. When we arrived a lady came in after us. She asked me if I was an American. I replied that I was. She then asked if I knew what was happening in my country at that moment. As a missionary, I didn't own a t.v. or a radio, or a computer. In fact I wasn't supposed to watch them or listen to them. So of course when she asked me that question my answer was no. She told me that I should turn on a T.V.
Well it was obvious something was happening. So I decided to break the rule and asked the owner of the house if I could take a look. I felt the same horror that everyone did as we watched the second plane hit. I don't know how long I watched. I had to strain to understand what the commentators were saying as they were of course in Spanish.
I remember that I cried. Knowing that my country was under attack. I understood that there were two more planes that had been hijacked. I wasn't allowed to call my family. And even if I had been I didn't know how to dial to the United States. So we just watched.
Finally I decided that I couldn't do that any longer. We said a prayer. It was my companion. The Argentine, a guy with whom I rarely got along with that said it. In that moment and in others that would follow. All barriers of race and nationality were dropped. We were brothers, he prayed for me as well as anyone that could have spoken English could have.
We left the house and attempted to work. But it was pointless. Not only were we both too worked up, shocked, and saddened by what happened. So were the people. Everyone was glued to their television sets. We found out about the Pentagon. My mind immediatly went to one of my missionary friends whose Dad worked in the Pentagon. I could only hope that he was alright. We found out about Flight 93 and how it had crashed in a feild.
Finally we admitted defeat and spent the rest of the day at a church members house, watching the news, trying to find out all the details. When our curfew arrived, all missionaries in their apartments by 9:30 each night, we went home and it was the first time I was able to talk to other Americans about the attack as our missionary roommates were both from the states as well. But it didn't matter that they were Americans. We all spoke in Spanish so we could include my companion.
Why am I talking about this? I just want to share something I learned that day and in the days that followed. We always hear about how everybody hates Americans. How they think that we are imperilaist pigs and such. I want to tell you that, that is not the truth. When those planes hit those Towers. I did not hear a single cat call or anyone say something snide about America getting hers.
Instead I recieved an outpouring of sympathy. It was well known to most in that community that I was an American. I had so many people express to me their deepest sympathies and love. They talked about how bad they felt for our country and our people. How they hoped that we would be able to recover from it and that they hoped that my family was alright.
People in other countries my disagree with our Government policies. But over all America still represents something to the World. It is the Land of Opportunity. I heard people worrying that it would be harder to obtain visas, and greencards in America now. That they wouldn't be able to go there as they had been hoping to.
America is bigger than any Presidential Administration. Any congressional majority. It's people are among the most optimistic, happy, and brightest on Earth. Less than 1% of the entire world's population "ever" have been able to enjoy the freedoms that we enjoy today. Think about that. We are more free than anyone has ever been.
Five years ago I learned that the American Spirit and Dream cannot be destroyed by cowardly attacks. I learned that we have people that care for us more than we know. And I learned to love a people in a forgein land.
One last thing. Today while I was making a delivery for my job. I overheard too women talking. They didn't know that I was listening in because they didn't know that I understand spanish. These two hispanic women were talking together. There conversation?
"I'm going to watch United 93 tonight."
"It's on video! I didn't know! I always wanted to see it."
"Yes I just bought it would you like to watch it with me?"
"I would love that! I heard it's such a sad movie, but that it's so good."
United 93 is a movie about the passengers of Flight 93 bravely sacrificing their own lives so the Terrorists couldn't carry out their plot to crash the plane into the Capital building or the Whitehouse. Two women, immigrants, watching a movie about one of the most tragic and heroic moments in our lifetimes.
America is great. No matter what language we speak.
God Bless.