Remembering 9/11

On my ride in to work this morning I was listening to the local news channel on the radio (ksl) and a regular feature by a local business man really made me think of those that were sacrificed 6 years ago in the towers. I thought I would share it with you.

Is This Normal? -- September 11, 2007

The events of Sept. 11, 2001 had a profound effect on all of us, our country and indeed the world. Today, on the anniversary of the tragedy, it's important that we reflect on the impact of this event.

Because of its pertinence today, I would like to quote from a piece called "Is This Normal?" by well- known Christian author Max Lucado,

"Four thousand gathered for mid-day prayer in a downtown cathedral. A New York City church filled and emptied six times on a Tuesday. The owner of a Manhattan tennis shoe store threw open his doors and gave running shoes to those fleeing the towers. People stood in lines to give blood, in hospitals to treat the sick and in sanctuaries to pray for the wounded.

"America was different that week. We wept for people we did not know. We sent money to families we've never seen. Talk show hosts read scriptures; journalists printed prayers. Our focus shifted from fashion hemlines and box scores to orphans and widows and the future of the world.

"We were different that week. Republicans stood next to Democrats. Catholics prayed with Jews. Skin color was covered by ash of burning towers. We're not as self-centered as we were. We're not as self-reliant as we were. Hands are out. Knees are bent. This is not normal. And I have to ask the question, 'Do we want to go back to normal?'

"Are we being given a glimpse of a new way of life? Are we being reminded that the enemy is not each other and the power is not in ourselves and the future is not in our bank account? Perhaps the best response is to follow the example of Tom Burnet. He was a passenger of flight 93. Minutes before the plane crashed in Pennsylvania he reached his wife by cell phone. 'We're all going to die,' he told her, 'but there are three of us who are going to do something about it.'

We can do something as well. We can resolve to care more. We can resolve to pray more. And we can resolve that, God being our helper, we'll never go back to normal again."

For Zions Bank, I'm Fred Ball. I'm speaking on business