Faith is indeed a choice.
I understand what it means to tragically lose someone you love in just a few breaths. To experience the permanent taking away of another human being you adored with your soul in a matter of seconds. After the September 11, 2001 attack, my life instantly became a devastating, heart exploding blur. I did all I could to spiritually and physically cope with the indescribable and profound loss of my younger brother James taken from our family that day.
Only 26, James was a young apprentice just two weeks into his training as an IBEW Local Union electrician. I was the only person on the outside world able to speak with him just after the planes hit the South Tower. Through God’s grace, we were brought together to speak by phone three times. James and so many others were trapped on the 105th floor moving and searching for a way out. On our final call lasting a precious few seconds, we shared our love as brother and sister.
Still not comprehending the total magnitude of all that was happening, I did not realize that I was about to receive the very last words James would send to the outside world. He asked that I tell our mother and father how much he loved them. I promised him that I would. The phone went silent and James was gone.
There is no way I will ever be able to capture how my last conversation with James irreversibly changed my life and how I see the world. At the time, I was a young wife and mother of a six year old son and a two year old daughter. My children were too little to even begin to understand how something so unimaginably horrible could happen to their beloved Uncle James. They needed me to keep our family together, protect and preserve the loving home we knew. Responsibilities at work still had to be met. I returned two weeks after the attack.
And while trying to cope with the tragic loss of our beautiful James, it was my faith in Christ that was my only source of light. My long devotion that began as a young girl to the Blessed Mother Mary grew stronger with every Rosary I prayed petitioning for the blessings of grace and strength. In faith, I chose to place all the devastation, all that I am and hoped to become and trust in God alone. I believe every day given to us is truly a gift of grace. By sharing my experiences and personal faith journey, I hope to help others discover how to find and live by their own inner light too. I believe that every person has the right to make their own unique imprint on the world. To listen and honor their own voice, who they are and what they believe deep down inside no matter the stakes or circumstance.
Truths to Inspire is my tribute to the eternal memory of my brother James.
Our family is forever committed and bonded in love to his remembrance. We honor forever the memory of all the innocent lost on September 11, 2001.
