Saturday, September 11, 2010

Where Were You


Remember
"Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)"
Alan Jackson

Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day
Out in the yard with your wife and children
Working on some stage in LA
Did you stand there in shock at the site of
That black smoke rising against that blue sky
Did you shout out in anger
In fear for your neighbor
Or did you just sit down and cry

Did you weep for the children
Who lost their dear loved ones
And pray for the ones who don't know
Did you rejoice for the people who walked from the rubble
And sob for the ones left below

Did you burst out in pride
For the red white and blue
The heroes who died just doing what they do
Did you look up to heaven for some kind of answer
And look at yourself to what really matters

I'm just a singer of simple songs
I'm not a real political man
I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell you
The difference in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith hope and love are some good things he gave us
And the greatest is love

Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day
Teaching a class full of innocent children
Driving down some cold interstate
Did you feel guilty cause you're a survivor
In a crowded room did you feel alone
Did you call up your mother and tell her you love her
Did you dust off that bible at home
Did you open your eyes and hope it never happened
Close your eyes and not go to sleep
Did you notice the sunset the first time in ages
Speak with some stranger on the street
Did you lay down at night and think of tomorrow
Go out and buy you a gun
Did you turn off that violent old movie you're watching
And turn on "I Love Lucy" reruns
Did you go to a church and hold hands with some stranger
Stand in line and give your own blood
Did you just stay home and cling tight to your family
Thank God you had somebody to love

I'm just a singer of simple songs
I'm not a real political man
I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell you
The difference in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith hope and love are some good things he gave us
And the greatest is love

I'm just a singer of simple songs
I'm not a real political man
I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell you
The difference in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith hope and love are some good things he gave us
And the greatest is love

The greatest is love
The greatest is love

Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day



16 comments:

  1. Greetings dear Abby,

    This is a most beautiful and fitting tribute to the memory of 9/11 and with it you do us proud.

    Like the Kennedy killing, 9/11 has has become part of our consciousness that shall remain with us forever. We just need to make sure we tell our children as many were too young and sheltered from the horrors. As we tell our memories to our grandchildren, we need to remember that not only Americans died, but individuals of other nationalities and especially different faiths. Doing so will allow us to heal as we keep the memories alive.

    Wishing you a peaceful weekend,
    Miss Kitty and Egmont

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  2. Wonderful tribute, Abby.

    On that September day- I found my parents glued to the TV, horror struck and speechless, as I came from a day-long rehearsal (I was taking part in a theater performance then)...

    Now that I think of it- it is one of the very few times when I saw my parents doing anything together...

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  3. My thoughts and prayers to those bereaved. Me and Charlie pray for peace and love and understanding.

    Take care
    x

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  4. This is a lovely tribute. I remember so clearly what I was doing that day. I was indoors doing some housework and my husband was working in the garage. He called to me and said that there had been an accident and a plane had crashed into the World Trade Centre. I turned on the TV to see if there was any news about it. There was live coverage and as I watched, the second plane went into the other tower and realised for the first time that it was no accident. As I write this I still feel the total shock and disbelief at what I was witnessing.
    Along with so many others, I remember and will never forget.
    Jackie

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  5. What a lovely post. I was training an early morning class and every time I came out some new horrible thing was told to me, it seemed completely unreal until I saw it for myself that night.

    Meg

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  6. None of us kitties were here yet, but my Dad and Mom sure remember. That was a beautiful tribute.

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  7. I saw the second plane hit in the lobby of a hospital where those crowded around the television collectively and in an instant, gasped and knew this was deliberate, this was an attack, the world was changed.

    Six years later I met a five year old little red headed girl, our neighbor. Even though she was so young, this day was personal... you see, her father died in the Pentagon that day... six months before she was born. One child who will never be able to forget...

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  8. Abby, this is a great tribute to the memory of those who were killed and maimed on that day and of those injured in the attacks. They will always be remembered and must be if we are ever to achieve peace.
    I was at work and my boss phoned in and told us to put the television on - we couldn't believe our eyes at what we were seeing - we couldn't comprehend the evil deeds done that day and the bravery of the rescuers.
    We pray for peace in the world.
    We will always remember -
    Sue

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  9. Abby, darling girl, that was one of the most fitting tributes to that tragedy I have read so far in all these years since.

    It affected me at my job and made me wonder would I live to see the next week.

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  10. I was driving in the car to my new job; my husband and family were half a country away and I remember feeling oh so alone, wondering if I'd ever see them again. I got to work in time to see the second tower fall on TV.
    The thing I remember most though is how quiet the skies were. No planes for days except the jets from Nellis AFB patrolling Hoover Dam and Lake Mead. It was eerie. I cried when I saw the first passenger plane in the sky two weeks later, it symbolized to me that life might go on.

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  11. I was in Dallas, TX, with my Mom and my first kitty, Nikki (1984-2004), taking Nik to a specialist for tests (they determined that afternoon she was too old for radiation, she lived another 3 years 9-18-04)...Anyway, had cried in the parking lot with Nik before taking her into the animal hospital and went to McDonald's with my Mom where people told us of the 1st tower crash, immediately followed by a phone call from my Dad; I told them right then it was no accident and within minutes, the other plane hit...My Mom and I went back to the hotel and watched TV all day until I could pick up Nik around 4:30 pm; we drove back to LA on a deserted interstate, starting in Dallas at 5 pm=never seen anything like it, not one other car for many many miles...I had family in NYC, didn't find out if they were safe until the evening on our drive home...A haunting day filled with so much evil and finally, so many heroes.

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  12. Abby what a beautiful post....
    we have just about the same photo you do today....taken from the Staten Island Ferry...looking back at the Twin Towers...ours was in 1987...

    Alan Jackson, in our opinion, is one of the best songwriters of this time....every time I hear that song I stop what I'm doing,
    Madi and Mom

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  13. PS...Mom said she was probably suppose to answer 'where were you'.
    She and Dad had just return from a trip to Europe on 9/7. Mom was working at a European Confernece. Normally after the conferenes Mom and Dad would stay 3 or 4 days for personal time. They had to be at a wedding on 9/8 so they came home early...otherwise they would probably have been over the Atlantic on 9/11 and been in the thousands and thousands of folks diverted to Canada.
    Madi and Mom

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  14. This is a wonderful tribute. If you compare your picture from 1981 to the one on my blog from 2008, you can line up many of the same buildings and see the place where the towers once were.

    Mom was able to see the towers burning from the roof of the building where she works. For almost a year, the fright and fear she felt as a result were awful.

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  15. This is a lovely tribute, Abby. The Human turned on the news this morning and we watched some of the replays of that day and she felt very sad all over again. So we both purred some good purrayers and then decided to find some joy in this sunny day!

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  16. Oops, the Human forgot to answer the "Where were you?" part. It was very early in the morning on the West Coast, so she was on her way to school when she heard. The faculty & kids gathered for a prayer service (Catholic school) and then the mayor of San Francisco ordered the schools closed so they sent all the kids home. Then she and another teacher friend came back to her house at about 10:30 and watched TV and started drinking wine at 11 in the morning.

    Me, I wasn't even borned yet.

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