We stand on the shoulders of giants, not to see ourselves as higher, but to see farther. Let that perspective humble us, and let the abundance we’ve been given become a ladder we lower for someone else to climb.
Earlier this year, I had the honor of visiting the National September 11 Memorial in New York City, the place where the Twin Towers once stood. Standing there, I felt the weight of history in a way that is hard to describe. It was emotional, quiet, and deeply human.
Twenty-five years later, September 11, 2001 is not simply a date on a calendar. For me, it is a marker in time: a moment that changed our country, shaped my path into military service, and continues to influence how I think about family, sacrifice, gratitude, and service to others.
The Morning Everything Changed
I remember exactly where I was when I first heard the news.
I was driving back from physical training with my Army ROTC unit at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado, heading toward the University of Denver. The radio station interrupted its regular programming to report that an airplane had crashed into one of the Twin Towers in New York.
The station was not known as a news outlet, and the hosts kept repeating that this was real—that it was not a joke, not a stunt, and not something to laugh about.
By the time I arrived back at the University of Denver, about 20 students were standing outside, cell phones in hand, trying to reach family members. It was the first week of classes and freshman orientation. We were young, focused on college, friendships, plans, and possibilities. Then, in a matter of hours, the world felt fundamentally different.
I went back to my dorm room and turned on the television. Like so many Americans, I was shocked and overwhelmed by what I was seeing. It was difficult to process the scale of the loss, the confusion, and the realization that people going about an ordinary morning had suddenly found themselves in the middle of something unimaginable.
A Moment That Changed Lives
Some events are so significant that we recognize their importance immediately. But their full effect unfolds over time. September 11 changed our nation in an instant. It also changed countless individual lives gradually, through the decisions people made, the careers they pursued, the people they loved, and the sacrifices they were asked to make.
In the 18 months after the attacks, my Army ROTC class went from roughly 30 students to fewer than eight. Some people understandably reconsidered whether to pursue an ROTC scholarship and commission as an officer. The possibility of military service during a period of war, heightened readiness, and deployment had become real.
Friends, both old and new, would go on to deploy in support of military operations that followed. Their service took them to places including Afghanistan, Iraq, Djibouti, and Kuwait.
I later deployed twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Looking back today as an OIF veteran, I think about how many moments, decisions, assignments, and circumstances shape a person’s life. There are hundreds of choices that affected my story that I did not make and could not control. Some friends I served with are no longer here. Others returned with wounds—visible and invisible—that changed their lives and the lives of their families forever. Their stories were cut short or altered in ways no one could have anticipated.
That reality stays with you.
Service on the Hardest Days
When I think about September 11, I think first about civil service.
I think about police officers, firefighters, EMTs, paramedics, dispatchers, federal employees, city employees, members of the armed forces, and so many others who choose to serve. These are people who spend their careers stepping into difficult moments. They respond when someone is scared, hurt, confused, stranded, grieving, or facing what may be the worst day of their life. On September 11, the world watched that calling carried out at an extraordinary level.
The first responders who ran toward danger did not have the benefit of hindsight. They did not know how the day would unfold. They made decisions in real time, often in service of people they had never met. Their courage represented the very best of what service can mean.
But gratitude should not be limited to remembrance ceremonies or anniversaries. It should extend to the firefighter responding to a call at 2 a.m., the police officer working a difficult shift, the paramedic arriving in a family’s crisis, the public works employee keeping a city functioning during a storm, the teacher guiding a child through a hard season, and the service member standing watch far from home.
These roles are not always glamorous. They often mean being present when everyone else would rather be anywhere else.
Gratitude for the Life We Get To Live
Visiting New York and the memorial this year made me emotional because it reminded me of both the fragility and the gift of ordinary life. As a father and husband, I see the world differently than I did as a college freshman on September 11, 2001. The life I have been fortunate enough to build—my family, my business, my friendships, and the chance to pursue meaningful work—is not something I take for granted.
We are not entitled to peace, safety, freedom, security, or good health. Life can change quickly. Risks and hardships do not always announce themselves in advance. That is not a reason to live in fear. It is a reason to live with gratitude.
It is a reason to appreciate the people around us, to make time for our families, to serve our communities, and to recognize the people whose work makes our daily lives possible. The pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness is strengthened by those willing to protect it, support it, and show up for others.
Choosing Unity and Service
After September 11, I cannot remember another time when the country felt more united. In the midst of grief, fear, and uncertainty, Americans found ways to help each other. People gave blood. They volunteered. They flew flags. They reached out to neighbors. They prayed, mourned, and stood together.
Today, America often feels deeply divided. Information can be curated and weaponized to make us angry, keep us engaged, and turn our attention into someone else’s profit. It can be easy to forget that the person on the other side of a disagreement is still a neighbor, a parent, a veteran, a teacher, a first responder, or simply another American trying to live a good life.
September 11 reminds me that we are capable of more than division. We are capable of courage, compassion, sacrifice, resilience, and unity.
This anniversary, I am grateful—for those who serve in uniform; for the civil servants who keep our communities moving; for the first responders who show up in moments of crisis; and for the families who support them.
Most of all, I am grateful for the opportunity to live a life that so many others helped preserve.
Take a moment this September 11 to thank someone who serves your community. A short note, a sincere conversation, or a simple “thank you” may not feel like much, but it is a meaningful way to honor those who keep showing up for all of us.
"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." John F. Kennedy 1961
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