Ten years ago today life changed. For every American. Our world, as we Americans knew it, was rocked to its very foundation.
I have been thinking about the post for this day for the last several. Would I be able to say what I wanted and have you, the reader, feel my gut, my heart? Would I find the words to convey what that day and what this day mean to me? I drew a blank. The words I wanted, I needed, wouldn’t come.
Thanks to a friend of mine I have the words. No, they aren’t mine, they’re his. The Adjutant General for the Delaware National Guard wrote a letter to our National Guard family and it spoke to me. I thought to myself that is exactly what I wanted to say, to give a parallel to show the magnitude of what we lived through that day, certainly something none of my peers could relate to but were well aware of all the same. I couldn’t find that connection on my own and he provided it. 9/11 is our Pearl Harbor.
The rest of his words, pure perfection. I emailed him and asked if I could print his letter here. He answered quickly with "SURE!”
So please, read the letter from my friend, Major General Frank Vavala.
To my Delaware National Guard Family,
It is fitting that we reflect on the words of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who said it best when our sovereignty, our homeland, was heinously, and without threat or warning, attacked on December 7, 1941. He called the strike on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, "a day that will live in infamy." Equally so, September 11, 2001, will live in infamy in the hearts and minds of every American today. For on this day ten years ago, more than 3000 United States citizens, and citizens from many other countries around the world, were senselessly slaughtered in the worst attack on America since Pearl Harbor. It was the greatest wartime loss of life on our soil since the Civil War.
As the initial sting of the attack fades and the news of our current conflicts continue, we must never forget the events and, most importantly, the heroes of that day. We must never forget the citizens, the firefighters and the law enforcement officers who lost their lives. And subsequently, we must never forget the countless members of our military who have lost their lives since then in our battle against the forces bent on the destruction of our country. We must continue to pray for the countless friends and family members who continue to grieve their loss; especially on this day.
We remember! We will never forget!
FRANCIS D. VAVALA
Major General
The Adjutant General, Delaware
General, Thank you for letting me re-print your letter.
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