Never Forget

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"Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children's children."

Deuteronomy 4:9

Traffic was AWFUL driving into work this past Thursday. Even for D.C., which is truly saying something. My commute should be - in theory - about 30 minutes, assuming no traffic.

Which is to say never.

But on Thursday, it took me close to an hour and half to get to work. I couldn't figure out why I-395 was so log-jammed; there was no accident or construction. I FINALLY got to my exit and saw that it was closed. In fact, every exit in that area was closed.

Um, what????

It was then I saw the large flags hanging down around the Pentagon City mall and remembered, oh. It's 9/11. My commute takes me directly passed the Pentagon, and due to the memorial services that occur, all roads in the area are pretty much shut down.

It was a bit of a harrowing journey to the office trying to figure out an alternate route and making it to my 8:30 meeting by the skin of my teeth. There was a sobering moment on I-395 though, as I sat in traffic next to the Pentagon, when an image came to mind of someone sitting in that exact spot 24 years ago - almost at the exact time - watching a plane fly into the building.

On 9/11, we often say "Never Forget."

But this year,

I forgot.

And that's what happens with time and life. Things we say we'll never forget, we do. It's no different with faith. We witness miracles and divine intervention - things we say will change as forever - and then as the weeks go by, it doesn't feel so miraculous anymore, and we let it slip into the background of our minds. Or we are convicted of something in our lives and swear we'll change, then fall back into old habits.

It is good that the Pentagon holds the memorial service each year, otherwise, honesty - we might forget. What else have we been forgetting in our lives, that we swore we would never forget? What memorial do we need to set up, to be sure we remember?

To those who still feel a person-sized whole every September,

The Lord remembers you.

Love,

Meg and Squirrel.