As the anniversary of September 11 approaches, we find ourselves once again drudging up compassion and patriotism, ready to light candles and join hands with strangers for the sake of peace and unity.... As the anniversary of September 11 approaches, we find ourselves once again drudging up compassion and patriotism, ready to light candles and join hands with strangers for the sake of peace and unity. Countless memorials across our nation will host thousands of tears praying, begging for a better world where planes are not flown into our mothers, brothers, and friends. Just as the weeks that followed September 11, 2001, Americans will stand together, united in our hope for love and kindness for all mankind. Everyone I know wants to do something grand, wants to hold hands and give hugs, maybe take dinner to an elderly woman. We'll turn our headlights on that day and hang our flags at half-mast. We will honk at the painted man holding his flag high on the highway overpass. However, as great as it is to have this unity back in our hearts, I can't help but feel disgusted that in the last half of the year, everyone forgot that little feeling of togetherness that carried our nation through those first few months of recovery. After the debris was cleared away from Ground Zero, after all survivors' wounds were dressed, and all television programming was back to normal, it seems as if Americans also returned to our old ways. It didn't take long for some of us to attempt to fraud the various charities setup for the families and victims of 9-11. In fact, some news reports tell of husbands killing their wives, passing off teary-eyed stories about how their soul mates were killed at the World Trade Center - lies that are true for many of our neighbors. This less than a year after we all held hands and cried together. Television news brings you reports of parents having sex with their 3-year-old child over a webcam, all for the pleasure of their fellow abusive parents. There's fighting everywhere. We must not only remember that 9-11 happened, but that all of these other things have happened since. Have we already forgotten how ugly the world can be that we're back to hurting each other again? Americans are disconnected from one another. We're back to hating, to slamming doors in each other's faces, tramping on flowers to save three seconds around the garden. Again, a fellow American isn't much more than an inconvenience, a traffic jam, or a lazy slob taking up air on the Eastside of town. As we light candles in memory of those lost on September 11, 2001, we should light the sun to remember how we felt about each other during those weeks that followed the attacks. With that much love for human life circulating on a more permanent basis, America is sure to change for the better. While we remember what was lost, we must take the time to remember what remains: walking past you on the street with a bag full of groceries, the children jump-roping in a parking lot, the elderly man that takes up smoking because he's tired of being alone. There are so many people in our country who are still alive and in need of our love and compassion. We will mourn again for those lost on September 11, 2001. But how long will our change-of-heart last this time? What about next year? We must be careful not to let it slip away again. If we don't take the time to pay some positive attention to those that are still around, September 11 will happen again; perhaps this time from within. Get up, America, and remember everything that happens. Sure, it's easy to turn the page and flip the channel, but, then the channel is the only thing that changes. Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com