Remembering 9/11

Mary and I visited Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Mary’s dad and brother had passed through there, at different times, while they were enlisted in the U.S. Navy. We knew the story of Pearl Harbor from our elementary school geography and history classes. It was our second trip to see the memorial. Twice we went to the monument that straddles the sunken hull of the battleship U.S.S. Arizona.  It is a stark white structure against the contrast of the deep blue Pacific Ocean.  From the observation deck, you can clearly see the outline of the ship just a few feet beneath the clear water.  Colorful fish swim through what used to be gun turrets capable of firing a shell for twenty miles. It is peaceful there, hushed; because in actuality, the U.S.S Arizona is a cemetery. 

The names of the U.S. Navy Sailors and the U.S. Marines are engraved on the back wall of the Memorial Room. 1,177 officers and crewmen were killed on December 7, 1941, in a surprise attack by Japanese air and naval forces. The next day, President Roosevelt, in asking for a declaration of war, declared that December 7, 1941, was “A date that will live in infamy.”

It takes a while to read the names of 1,177 officers, but I read them all. Some names stand out. They are names that are already familiar to you. You look for your own last name, curious to see if you had any relatives who perished there. The surnames of friends and acquaintances are noted.  You wonder what it might have been like if all of those men had lived.  How many children would they have fathered?  How would our world be different?  How much joy did they miss out on?  How many children grew up without a daddy?

Visiting the U.S.S. Arizona monument is a sobering experience.  It helped me to better understand the price of my present freedom. I was saddened. But I also had an overwhelming sense of pride at being an American. I knew how World War II would end. It would exact a great price in lives, but the United States of America and her allies would be victorious.

I am writing this remembrance on Monday morning, September 7, 2026.  Friday, September 11 will be the twenty-fifth anniversary of another “date that will live in infamy.”  9/11 is the anniversary of another surprise attack on the United States of America by an evil enemy.  According to www.wiki.answers.com, in total, 3,497 people died in the attacks on the Twin Towers in N.Y.C.  and the Pentagon Building in Washington D.C. We cannot be certain of the number who have died since then because of trauma and smoke inhalation.

Today, I have asked myself the same questions that I asked about the men entombed in the Arizona:  “What would the world be like if all of those men and women had lived?   How many children would have been born to them?  How would the world be changed if they had all lived?  How much joy did they miss out on?  How many children are growing up without a mommy or a daddy?  How many husbands without their wives, and vice-versa.”

Today, I skimmed through the list of the victim's names on the internet. Others will look more closely, searching for the name of their loved one. There are a lot of names. Their names have a familiar ring to them. They sound like the names of people we know and love. To remember them today is a sobering experience. 

Remembering helps me to better understand the price of my present freedom. A famous statement is absolutely true. “Freedom is never free.” There is always a price to pay for freedom. “ If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:38).