Today we sang "America The Beautiful" in church; it is impossible for me to sing that song without crying. We sang it today, along with other songs and hymns, in remembrance of those who lost their lives, those who gave their lives, and those who lost loved ones on September 11, 2001.
How can I sing any song in remembrance of these things and not break down into tears for many, many reasons. Added to it is the fact that my brothers and my sister and I sang America The Beautiful at my oldest brother's bedside as he lay dying in a hospital in 2005. As we sang with him, he roused just enough out of pain and semi-consciousness to hum the melody with us somewhere in his throat ... it was all he could do.
The simplicity of singing one verse of a meaningful song, all of us together there with him holding hands and holding his hands, and the intense feelings of love stirred throughout the room by the moment and our singing touched off something in the universe that brought my brother back to life enough that he lived another two weeks. It was enough time for him to have a chance to say goodbye to us all and allow us to say goodbye to him, to assure him that his affairs were set in order and to allow him to die in peace rather than anguish.
The feelings many of us have today are complex. I have no idea what it is like for those who lost someone that day, I only know what it was like for me and my family then and since then. Our lives have changed forever, and I believe they have changed in ways we cannot or do not fathom perhaps.
My heart goes out to anyone who might by chance come across my blog who grieves for someone they knew directly and lost that day. Whether there is such a person out there who reads my blog, I don't know. I hope that regardless of whether there is a direct connection or not, that my love comes across somehow in this large world that is actually so very small. And, if my love does reach some one as that, I hope it makes some kind of difference to you. I am out here today, singing whatever songs I can think of out loud and to myself, hoping my voice makes some kind of difference somewhere in the world today.
Those of you who lost and gave your lives that day, you will never be forgotten, the light of who you were and who you are will never extinguish.
~firefly
A September 11 remembrance
9/11 faith family Life love personal September 11 Septemer 11 spirituality
Today we sang "America The Beautiful" in church; it is impossible for me to sing that song without crying. We sang it today, along with other songs and hymns, in remembrance of those who lost their lives, those who gave their lives, and those who lost loved ones on September 11, 2001.
How can I sing any song in remembrance of these things and not break down into tears for many, many reasons. Added to it is the fact that my brothers and my sister and I sang America The Beautiful at my oldest brother's bedside as he lay dying in a hospital in 2005. As we sang with him, he roused just enough out of pain and semi-consciousness to hum the melody with us somewhere in his throat ... it was all he could do.
The simplicity of singing one verse of a meaningful song, all of us together there with him holding hands and holding his hands, and the intense feelings of love stirred throughout the room by the moment and our singing touched off something in the universe that brought my brother back to life enough that he lived another two weeks. It was enough time for him to have a chance to say goodbye to us all and allow us to say goodbye to him, to assure him that his affairs were set in order and to allow him to die in peace rather than anguish.
The feelings many of us have today are complex. I have no idea what it is like for those who lost someone that day, I only know what it was like for me and my family then and since then. Our lives have changed forever, and I believe they have changed in ways we cannot or do not fathom perhaps.
My heart goes out to anyone who might by chance come across my blog who grieves for someone they knew directly and lost that day. Whether there is such a person out there who reads my blog, I don't know. I hope that regardless of whether there is a direct connection or not, that my love comes across somehow in this large world that is actually so very small. And, if my love does reach some one as that, I hope it makes some kind of difference to you. I am out here today, singing whatever songs I can think of out loud and to myself, hoping my voice makes some kind of difference somewhere in the world today.
Those of you who lost and gave your lives that day, you will never be forgotten, the light of who you were and who you are will never extinguish.
~firefly
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