September 11

Today we pause to remember the men and women eight years ago who--faced with fire, smoke, and broken glass--helped strangers in darkened corridors go down the stairs, so they themselves could go up.

We also pause to remember the men and women eight years ago on a plane in Pennsylvania airspace who made the decision to not allow themselves to be used as a weapon, and those in the wreckage of the Pentagon completing a myriad of duties until hate fell from the sky.

And we salute the teachers who eight years ago struggled to explain to their students the images of falling towers and pierced buildings, and the teachers who today work to ensure our students are never faced by similar images again.