Today is the 25th Anniversary of September 11, 201. It is a day forever etched in our hearts and minds. It’s a day we remember the tragedy, but also the extraordinary courage of ordinary people.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, 27-year-old Honor Elizabeth Wainio boarded United Airlines Flight 93. She was on her way to a business meeting with Discovery Channel Stores, unaware — like millions of others that day — that the world was about to change forever.
Mid-flight, when terrorists took control of the plane, chaos and fear engulfed the passengers. In that desperate moment, Honor made an extraordinary choice: she didn’t think of herself, but of others.
At 9:53 a.m., she managed to contact her stepmother. Her voice was calm despite the impending tragedy. She didn’t talk about herself, nor did she lament her fate. With disarming clarity, she tried to provide comfort, saying: “I’m so sorry that this is so much harder for you guys than it is for me.”
Her last words, shortly before the passengers of Flight 93 launched a brave act to regain control of the cockpit, were an act of pure love: “I have to go. They’re getting in the cockpit. I love you.”
Honor, along with the other courageous men and women on that flight, showed the brightest face of humanity in a moment of absolute darkness. She didn’t think about fear, but about family, love, and duty.
That day, Flight 93 never reached the terrorists’ target. Thanks to the sacrifice of the passengers, the aircraft crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, preventing another devastating attack.
The story of Honor Elizabeth Wainio continues to live on as an example of strength, love, and quiet courage. In the immense pain of that September 11th, her words and actions remind us that even in the most terrible moments, the human heart can choose to shine.
We Are Human Angels
My Commentary:
On this 25th anniversary of September 11th, we remember not only how thousands died, but how courage, sacrifice, and love emerged from unimaginable darkness.
Honor Elizabeth Wainio knew that her life might be ending. Yet her final thoughts were not centered on herself. She tried to comfort her family. Then came those beautiful final words: “I love you.”
Jesus told us, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” The passengers of Flight 93 knew the danger before them, yet they acted together, hoping to save people they would never meet.
September 11th showed us humanity at its worst. But people like Honor showed us humanity at its best.
Over 100 million people have been born in the USA since September 11th, 2001. That means a quarter of our population does not remember the horror of that day. The average age of the people who perished that day was 37. They had most of their lifetime ahead of them.
Twenty-five years later, perhaps the greatest lesson for all of us, whether we were alive back then or not is this: we cannot always choose what happens to us, but we can choose how we respond. Events happening in our country today are shouting out for you and me to respond.
When darkness comes, choose courage.
When hatred comes, choose love.
And never wait until your final moments to tell someone:
“I love you.”
What events that are happening in our country today are shouting out for you and me to respond?
THERE ISN’T ENOUGH ROOM IN YOUR MIND FOR BOTH WORRY AND FAITH. YOU MUST DECIDE WHICH ONE WILL LIVE THERE!
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