Less than a month after The Gate was launched, I posted an article on Sunday, September 10, 2006 pertaining to my experience regarding the day of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, which I have basically repeated each year since — with some tweaks and edits along the way — but this year of remembering September 11, 2001 23 years later from Ireland is different than in years past.
Remembering September 11, 2001 23 Years Later — From Ireland.
Earlier this evening for dinner on this memorable day, I dined at a pub in Ireland that has been in existence for at least 404 years. I was informed that much of a wall inside of the pub was dedicated to the events of September 11, 2001.
Hanging on the wall was a jacket framed in glass, with the patches of the police department and the fire department of the city of New York. The jacket was donated by Mike Egan, who is a sergeant for the New York Police Department in memory of Edward Geraghty, who was his brother-in-law and battalion chief of the ninth battalion of the Fire Department of New York and lost his life on Tuesday, September 11, 2001 at what was the World Trade Center.
The following words were printed on a piece of paper before being laminated and included within the frame:
September 11, 2001
New York City Firefighters
As most of us stopped, to see
the fire in the sky.
you were in the trucks, passing us by.
As the unthinkable horror,
makes us shed a tear,
you entered the building,
in your rescue gear,
As we sat in panic praying for no more,
you were climbing stairs floor by floor.
We sat confused, awed, and in strife,
you were looking, hoping, and
praying for life.
As the building came down,
we feared you would too,
But God gave you wings
and instead you flew.
-Emily Dickenson
A photograph of a firefighter for the city of New York named Michael was also included in the frame.
Various official patches from the civil services of the city of New York were also hanging on display — as well as a small plaque with a photograph of several firefighters with the official flag of the United States and the inscription:
WORLD TRADE CENTER
“AND OUR FLAG WAS STILL THERE”
NYC SEPTEMBER 11 2001
Final Boarding Call
Knowing that management of a pub in Ireland had dedicated a wall to a historical event that occurred thousands of miles away was comforting, in a way — but unfortunately, one of the personnel of the pub had no idea about what was the significance of September 11. Perhaps the reason was because she had never been to the United States. Maybe the fact that she was born four years after the tragic events had occurred had something to do with it…
…but I am concerned that the significance of September 11 is lost among the newest generations of citizens in the United States — not so much for the number of deaths that occurred on that day, as in 2023 alone, greater than…
- 650,000 died from heart disease
- Eight thousand people were murdered
- One million abortions occurred
…and no one really talks about these or many other causes of death; but I simply do not want to see anything even close to that horrific of an event occur again on the soil within the United States.
History has a tendency to repeat itself when lessons are not learned and significant historical events are forgotten…
All photographs ©2015 and ©2022 by Brian Cohen.
