To some, 9/11/01 was a sign to cling more tightly to their beliefs about the world and their place in it, attempting to be 'steady in a time of change.' To me, and many others I'm sure, it marked the beginning of a long period of searching and questioning that continues to this day. Now, I'm sure most of the 'clingers' feel completely vindicated by the events that have transpired since then, and who knows, maybe they're all right one way or another. I have no such satisfaction, instead stumbling around in the half-light of history, trying to peer through the fog of war, all in the midst of the deafening cacophony of idiocy that is election year politics. Ask me how I feel about 'the direction of the country', ask me about how I feel about the 'direction' of my life and my soul, I'll give the same half-fearful, half-hopeful shrug.
Still, I remember, with retrospective shame, watching the clouds of smoke rising up over downtown Manhattan from my dorm roof and thinking clearly, amidst the haze of grief, terror, and various chemical psychological cushions of varying legality, "I am not ready to die for the unjust policies of my government, I've got to leave New York, I've got to leave America.". I was young, I was deep in the college-politics echo chamber, I was dumb. Three years later, I am still young and dumb, but I am also still in New York (and plan to stay), and, well, I like America. Three years later, the world has changed and so have I - here's hoping we keep going.
MORE: Winds of Change has a literally overwhelming collection of 9/11 links - take time to read a few at least, remember, and reflect.