Remember

You'll hear that word a lot today. Do you remember when??????

Of course you do- we all do.
We remember:
- the horror of realizing the first crash into the WTC wasn't an accident
- seeing flaming- and not flaming- bodies flying to the ground from upper floors
- the Pentagon in flames- the phrase "Let's Roll"
- the shock of seeing not one, but two WTC towers fall
- ash-covered New York residents, roaming the streets
- the eery shrill tone of the firefighter's locator beacons
- crying... a lot
- the song "Proud to be an American" became our battle cry
- flags waving from every house, every store, and every car- or so it seemed
- vowing vengeance
- planes grounded for days, except for military jets and cargo planes
- the fear of flying in post-9/11 times
- feeling helpless, yet not without hope
- watching the TV for weeks on end, hoping and praying for survivors to be found
- realizing that America wasn't as safe as we thought it was
- believing that Saddam and Osama would both be found and killed
- discovering what it meant to be a radical islamic fundamentalist
- asking how could anyone do something like this in the name of their "god"

Yeah. We remember a lot about 9/11/01 and the days that followed. But we've forgotten a lot too. Unfortunately, many Americans- including government officials- have forgotten what it means to be at war. They've forgotten that living in a war zone will eventually lead to unavoidable civilian deaths. They've forgotten the vow of vengeance we all made at day. They've forgotten how to honor our military. They've forgotten that we have a 100% voluntary military who are dedicated to completing their mission. They've forgotten that re-enlistment rates are soaring. They've forgotten that supporting our troops includes supporting their mission. They've forgotten how to say "Thank you for defending our freedom, and promoting freedom around the world."

It's our mission now to make sure that we not only remember, but we also remember that far too many have forgotten. We must make them remember. We must make them forge on.

We must win.