I fly a lot and my usual routine is to find my seat get comfortable and occupy myself with something. Continental now has Direct TV on most flights and I can rely on that, if nothing else, to keep me occupied. On today’s flight a very polite man sat next to me. I say polite because he called me sir and said please and thank you in virtually every sentence that came out of his mouth. He was a studious guy first checking the news and markets on his iPAD and then on Direct TV. He mentioned he was going to the Corporate Headquarters of his employer that happens to be near my home. When I asked how long his stay would be he told me he was on a flight back home tonight. A quick turn like that begged a question, why? My tendency is to ask questions sometimes without thinking. He said he had to return home because he had lost his brother on 9/11/01 and this weekend marked the tenth anniversary of this horrible tragedy and he needed to be home with his family and friends.
This tragic event is simply known as 911. A simple number conjures up a recollection of a day that will be remembered for a long time. It is ironic that so many of those that lost their lives in those two towers were people that worked and relied on numbers. Perhaps that is a fitting tribute to their memory and talent.
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The man on the plane went on to tell me how he had spent time with his brother the day before 911 preparing for a trip they planned to take together hunting in Colorado. Their plane was scheduled to leave at 4pm on 9/11/01. As he spoke I could feel his pain, he choked back tears and emotion that were impossible to hide. I now noticed the silver bracelet on his wrist inscribed with his brother’s name. I could tell I was not intruding and he wanted to share the story. He loved his brother and it showed. On that faithful day he actually talked to his brother at work in the South Tower after the first plane hit the North Tower and his brother told him he was going to call his wife and head for the stairs. After meeting the man on the plane it did not surprise me that his kid brother was going to reassure his wife he was okay before getting out of the building, you see he must have been a selfless gentleman like his brother.
Surviving tragedy is difficult, on one hand you survive and on the other hand someone does not. How you choose to deal with that can define your life in many ways. The man on the plane was most proud of an event that his wife planed for the family. He said she knew something constructive needed to be done to reunite everyone. I like to think that sorrow has a responsibility and that it holds you accountable to what you need to learn from it. You can let it eat you alive or you put one foot in front of the other and accept and appreciate your new perspective. I know this is much easier said than done, but it must be done. The event was a motocross event that would reunite close friends and family. As the man on the plane told me of this event I could feel the healing that went on coming through in his words and his expression. It was as if the love and remembrance for his kid brother and his devotion and love for his wife and family combined to cause a peace in his voice and perhaps his heart.
I may never see the man on the plane again but I will not soon forget him. All I could think of was the truth spoken by Jesus according to Matthew 5:4 “God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” I met the man on the plane on 9/9/11.
cmgartner
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