Today is the 19th anniversary of 9/11. It seems almost impossible that so much time has passed since the horrible events of that day. So many of the feelings and images are so fresh in my mind.

At least partially that is because of the stage production Come From Away. It chronicles the experiences of Gander, Newfoundland, which became the place where 38 in-progress flights landed when the decision was made to ground all flights over North America. That little airport, which hadn’t seen a lot of action since planes that could make it across the Atlantic on one tank of fuel were engineered, suddenly looked like this:

The soundtrack of that show is on my rotation of songs and when I’m driving, I usually just shuffle and listen to whatever comes up next. With some regularly it’s a track from CFA. I can sing/speak along with most of them by heart.

Today is a day for grief remembered. Even in the midst of the pandemic, we cast our thoughts back 19 years to the experiences of that day and the days afterward.

And in doing so there are some lessons: while this is an unprecedented time, we have been through hard times before. We have learned to pick up the pieces. We have adjusted. We have found ways to be resilient.

So even as we remember grief, I encourage you – we will get through this difficult time, too. One day, we will be amazed to think – oh wow, that was 19 years ago.

I’d also encourage you that even in the midst of heartbreakingly tragic moments in history there are good people who just want to help. Like the entire town of Gander did.

In the meantime, may this be true today, and every day:

Until tomorrow, dear friends, remember the grief but also remember the lessons. And trust in God to heal broken hearts and bind up our wounds!