This is the day of most birthdays in the planet. So Happy Birthday wishes go out to many people today. It could be millions of people!
I wish my google searches were international and not North American focused today - that's a google challenge. This is a very unhappy U.S. day of the anniversary of 9/11. This event took almost 3,000 lives - which is not a huge number when it comes to catastrophes. Compare that to Hurricane Katrina where almost 2,000 lives were lost, but that event pales in comparison. 9/11 has turned into the most catastrophic occasion in U.S. history in my lifetime. The intensity of the event can be seen in the news that they are still pursuing and revealing the identifies of those killed - this is fresh news. The search for bodies in Louisiana's Katrina was called off well before all of the bodies were recovered. What a stark contrast is the reaction to nature's destruction compared to the destruction caused by radical Osama Bin Laden, motivated by "naive beliefs" (according to the Britannica Encyclopedia).
Perhaps the sense of horror was made more severe by the nature of the event and the live coverage - the twin towers being hit and exploding. Remember that being shown over and over? It was concentrated, focused and intense.
It caused its own explosion of rage in the U.S. political-military leadership that cost an estimated $8 trillion, along with new levels of discrimination, racial profiling, and hate crimes in the U.S. It is a sorry legacy that lives alongside the many poignant stories of loss of loved ones in the catastrophe.
So today is a solemn day with everyone remembering where they were and when they say the twin tower crash coverage, and then many observances in the U.S. over this event that changed its history and character.
These pretty lilies come from the Lilycrest Gardens field - huge blooms, gorgeously scented. They our this month's Happy Birthday card.
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