Remembrance Times

Today, September 11, 2011 is actually given over to public remembering. In this era of "the moment" it is rare to actually pause to call to mind an event from ten years in the past.

This impresses me as a sign of hope in American culture. History is made up of a flow of events that just keep on happening. The flow soon covers over previous events some of which can assist in learning more effective methods of managing life itself. It takes a conscious effort to pick out events worthy of remembrance.

Traumatic events like the 911 attacks of 2011 and The American Civil War of 1861-1865 are formative events in American culture. Violent events seem most likely to be the focus of public remembrance times. It apparently takes such shock treatment to get the attention of a society.

Delton