9-11-2026 4:18am

"B Inspired": 9/11/2001. Never forget.

Lesley Misko Editor

by Jane Stahl

9/11/2001. Never forget.

Seared into the memories of those who watched the towers fall twenty-five years ago are images that return on the anniversary of that day when the shock of what had happened to our country changed the course of our history. We remember.

I remember the “true blue” sky that morning and a top I chose to wear from my wardrobe that matched the color of that sky perfectly.

I remember dismissing the student who walked into my Shakespeare II class, suggesting I turn on the TV to follow the news that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. Certain that it was some small plane and some random accident, I denied his request and “carried on” with my lesson plan. I remember my own shock when I learned that, indeed, the attack was purposeful, that our world was forever changed.

I remember the following morning, facing students processing their own shock, not knowing exactly what to say, but knowing that I had to help them see beyond their fear and despair of the moment. I like to think my words that morning gave them hope. For healing. For their future.

I remember the heroism of those airline passengers of Flight 93. “Let’s roll” still stirs a mixture of pride and sorrow. I imagine the last moments and messages those brave souls sent to their loved ones before meeting that moment selflessly—knowing their certain fate.

Their heroism brings Andy Rooney to mind who wrote of the stance that the editor of a London newspaper took in 1942 when the Germans were bombing the city every night, destroying the city. The editor chose to feature the heroes, claiming, “There is good and bad in all of us and the right example at the right moment can make all the difference in the way men act.” The editor took a stance that I’ve been determined ever since to model: focus on the everyday heroes in spite of the devastation taking place in wars and conflicts around the world.

I remember how the trauma changed us as a community—unified for a time—in pride and sorrow. I remember wishing we could hold onto that spirit of unity, believing that we might.
And, in fact, five years later—20 years ago this month--our community held a “Hometown Heroes” event that seemed to renew that spirit.

In September 2006, Boyertown staged a “Hometown Heroes” parade and event that attracted over 1500 people eager to demonstrate our continued appreciation for our service personnel and the efforts each of us takes to forward good will.

I recall seventeenth century poet John Milton who wrote of dedicated Disciples of Christ, saying, “They also serve who only stand and wait,” emphasizing that there are many ways, many unsung heroes, who serve a cause and a community with honor.

Perhaps today, as we remember, or help our younger people understand, we can model what William Faulkner termed the “poet’s, the writer’s duty in his Nobel Prize Acceptance speech. Faulkner explained: “The poet’s, the writer’s, duty …his privilege…[is] to help man endure by lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past. The poet’s voice…can be one of the props, the pillars to help him endure and prevail.”

Our world needs that spirit today as we watch the devastation taking place in wars and conflicts around the world. We seem to have learned nothing.

Yet, perhaps today, under perhaps a slightly clouded sky, we could fix our thoughts on the perspective of astronaut Ron Garan who, as Neil deGrasse Tyson reported in a Facebook post, “returned to Earth after 178 days aboard the International Space Station carrying something far heavier than space equipment or mission data. He returned with a transformed understanding of humanity itself.

“From orbit, Earth doesn’t look like a collection of countries, borders, or competing interests. It appears as a single, radiant blue sphere suspended in darkness. No lines divide continents. No flags mark territory. From 250 miles above the surface, every human conflict suddenly looks small — and every human connection looks unavoidable.”

Garan watched “lightning storms crackle across entire continents, auroras ripple like living curtains over the poles, and city lights glow softly against the planet’s night side. What struck him most wasn’t Earth’s power — it was its fragility. The atmosphere protecting all life appeared as a paper-thin blue halo, barely visible, yet responsible for everything that breathes, grows, and survives.

“That view triggered what astronauts call the ‘overview effect’ — a profound cognitive shift reported by many who see Earth from space. It’s the sudden realization that humanity shares a single, closed system. No backups. No escape route. No second home.Overview Effect

“Garan began questioning humanity’s priorities. On Earth, economic growth is often treated as the ultimate goal. From space, that hierarchy collapses. He argues that the correct order should be planet first, society second, economy last — because without a healthy planet, neither society nor economy can exist.

“He often compares Earth to a spacecraft. A ship carrying billions of crew members, all dependent on the same life-support systems. And yet, many behave as passengers rather than caretakers, assuming someone else is responsible for keeping things running.

“From orbit, pollution has no nationality. Climate systems ignore borders. Environmental damage in one region ripples across the entire globe. The divisions we defend so fiercely on the ground simply don’t exist from above.

“Garan’s message isn’t abstract or idealistic. It’s practical. If humanity continues to treat Earth as an unlimited resource rather than a shared system, the consequences will be universal.

“Seeing Earth from space didn’t make him feel small. It made him feel accountable.

“Because when you truly understand that we’re all riding the same fragile spacecraft through the universe, the idea of 'us versus them' quietly disappears — replaced by a single, unavoidable truth:

“There is only us.”

And so, let us remember Fred Rogers’ plea, “Won’t you be my neighbor?” Mr. Rogers knew there are no strangers—just friends we haven’t yet met. Let us renew our spirit of togetherness somehow, remembering how important we are to one another, that we are in this together and—in effect—we are one body...there is, in fact, “only us.”