It seems that today we are more divided than any other time I can remember. Divided by race, religion, political party, by the education we received or the amount of money in our accounts and by where we live.
From coast to coast and throughout the Midwest we eat different foods, watch different TV and live our lives more like our neighbor and less like those who live in a surrounding state.
There are 50 states, five territories, 3,007 counties and 41,701 zip codes in the United States. Yet, despite the staggering differences, divineness and inflammatory rhetoric, there are times when we are ONE America.
I still remember nearly every detail of my surroundings when I heard about the April 19, 1995, bombing in Oklahoma City. I remember vividly that I was studying history in my fourth-grade classroom and the principal came to pull me out of class. My mom worked downtown and wanted us to know she was safe.
I remember every detail about watching the news on a large CRT TV. While the events of that day shaped who I am today, it wasn’t the actions of a deranged, evil madman that left the biggest lessons. It was the overwhelming sense of community that surrounded us all.
The sense of community stretched well beyond the confines of a single state when terrorists turned a means of transportation and a symbol of luxury and fantasy into missiles of misery and suffering. Lawton is more than 1,500 miles from the former World Trade Center in New York, but, on that fateful day, the distance seemed to shorten to just a quick stroll.
For a brief time, we set aside our petty differences and turned our attention to the 2,977 innocent lives lost and countless souls affected. Our vitriol towards each gave way to our contempt and hatred for those who had perpetrated those horrible and shameful acts of cowardness terrorism.
The question that many of us have is twofold. Does it take a national tragedy for us to come together as a society? Is it possible to set aside our petty differences and engage one another in substantive debates?
This Wednesday, I will mark the 18th Anniversary of 9/11 with prayers for the families of those who lost their lives, for those who were injured and for the first responders who will never be the same.
I will also be taking a moment to reflect on what is possible when we are united as a nation.