Yesterday we were hunting for a comic book store that would satisfy the needs of my 10 year old Justice League enthusiast. He isn't opposed to DC comics but he is partial to the JL. Someday I will need to post my feelings on the lack of appropriate comics for 10 year olds and why there are so few that I could place in his hands without censoring pages, but that is not for today. Today, after spending way too much on something that we knew he would have mostly read before we ever reached home, we decided to find a park. It was a gorgeous day, too beautiful to waste, so we looked for a large green area on the GPS map and asked the nice lady to take us there. She took us to Eagle Rock Reservation.
It was lovely! As we drove in on a winding, switchback road, we couldn't wait to park the car and hike the trails. There wasn't much parking at the access points and the spots were already filled with the cars of other people who had this great idea first. We kept driving, looking for someplace to pull over. We found it.
As we crested the top of the hill we could see the New York City skyline off in the distance. It was gorgeous and we could see some sort of park ahead so we went over to investigate. What we had found was the Eagle Rock Reservation 9/11 Memorial. What a day to be drawn to this spot.
Tomorrow 9/11 rolls around again. We are 11 years past the day that the world collectively gasped as they watched the towers fall. In that moment we all felt the sorrow, shared the shock, and experienced the pain. Living where I do, I know many families that lost loved ones that day. We've all moved on, they've all tried to heal, but seeing that date on the calendar must be so hard. It is just a day but it is a day that changed us all.
So much has happened since, so many things that create so many conflicting feelings in so many people but as I stood at that overlook and ran my hands over the names of the people who lost their lives that day, I just felt sad. No philosophical, religious, or political rationale can return what was lost to these families. Here and at memorials the world over that hope to show us how much is lost when we can't find a better way to resolve our differences, you wonder, can humankind ever realize that a peaceful resolution is the path forward? As I looked out at the Freedom Towers rising on the horizon, I offered up a prayer of hope.
