Fighting the Good Fight: My 9/11 Remembrance

OK, everybody has a 9/11 story. Certainly, we all wish that day could have passed us by uneventfully. But the attacks against The United States of America that morning are indelibly etched into our being, not because we choose to remember, but because we cannot forget.
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We were all impacted by 9/11, some more than others. To those who lost loved ones, the impact is much more personal,visceral and deep. We all as a nation suffered that day, and continue to pay the price. Optimism about the future has now morphed into fear. A country that seemed impenetrable to radical fanaticism now distrusts anyone who wears a thobe (long robe worn by Muslim men), a ghutra (head scarf) or simply a long beard. Airplanes are grounded when a pocket knife is found on an unsuspecting traveler. Airports are gridlocked when a loved one breaches the check-in point. Airline travel is down 20 percent since 9/11.

I was working as a production manager at a production/wholesale facility that day. I was not at a computer, but word trickled in that the World Trade Center was struck by an aircraft of some sort. This could be bad, I remember thinking. Like the rest of us, my thinking changed drastically when the second plane hit the South Tower. I began to wonder about my sister, and how all this would likely wreck her day with the knowledge our borders were under attack. Rear Admiral (Ret.) Jane Dalton, then a Captain, was chief legal counsel to Gen. Richard Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Her office was in the Pentagon, the headquarters of the Department of Defense. I figured her already-heavy workload just got even more burdensome.

Then I heard the Pentagon was attacked, ending my work day. I immediately rushed home and tried to reach her through e-mail and by cell phone. No response.This went on through the next day. On a typical day, 30,000 people can be found in the world's largest office building. Which of its five sides was struck? Does this mean she had a one in five chance of being a casualty? All these thoughts ran through my head.

Finally, I got a short e-mail from her office: "I'm OK. Tell the others." That's all I needed to hear. I learned later she was on the direct opposite side of the impact site, but felt the building shake. She said she thought little of it until a few minutes later, when she and her staff were rushed outside. Through all the chaos, a temporary command post was set up, and her string of 16-hour workdays began. But at least she was safe.

We understand the risks our military takes to protect our borders and preserve democracy. We grew up Air Force brats. Our father was a pilot, and would often come home from TDY complaining an engine failed on landing. Even in the U.K., where he taught Air Force JROTC after retirement, bomb threats were not uncommon at the base we lived. I remember him going back into the school once to help look for a suspicious device after our high school was evacuated for the umpteenth time. This was part of military life.

Tears well up every time I hear "Taps" being played. I've heard those words uttered, "On behalf of the President and this grateful nation, we thank your father for his meritorious service." Dad lived just long enough to see Jane fight the good fight, as he once did.

Forget politics, or the reasons why our government makes the choices it makes. As we approach the 10th anniversary (if that is even the right word for it) of 9/11, let's remember and honor not only the troops in the Middle East, but also our men and service women worldwide also fighting the good fight.