9/11 The Day that Changed the World - A View from the Harbor

Almost ten years ago on  9/11/01  after all of the events happened that day I watched the news as search lights flooded ground zero, the chirping of downed firefighter alarms was still ringing in the evening.    I sought solace in prayer and then turned to pen and paper to get my thoughts down and get them out.  Writing can be cathartic, especially times when you are overwhelmed with emotions.  I had seen a picture that day of the Statue of Liberty as the 2 towers burned and at once it struck me she was a witness to the day just as were we, what would she say, like all Americans that day she watched the events unfold, all of America on television, while she stood at her post in the harbor. I turned first to the sonnet written by Emma Lazarus in 1883 "The New Colossus" that appears in Bronze at the bottom of the Statue of Liberty - after reading this and reviewing it I began to put words down on all she saw that day.

"The New Colossus"

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Emma Lazarus, 1883

A View from the Harbor, Smoke at the Golden Door
Darren W Stewart 9/11/01

Welcoming those that came before
My torch beside the Golden door
Burning bright this clear morn
the September my heart was torn
Twin Citadels, towering, etching sky
ablaze this day, billowing high
the tempest-tost, the sirens wail
the bravery true freedom's hail
Weeping, mourning I lift my light
my torch once hope, now breaks the night
for those to search to hear a heart
My light still burns I won't depart
I stand still proud, full of hope
for the ones left behind to cope
with such tragedy, injustice, fear
Let those that witnessed draw near
And through the tears and the flames
let me stand still brightly without my frame
of towers on the shore now and forever more
and my essence still doth freedom ring.

Surrounded by So Great a Cloud of Estrogen -

I have the privilege of being married to the woman of my dreams and one who I know God destined me to be with.  God blessed me when I became the father of 3 daughters.  The reaction I get when I tell people I have 3 daughters is mixed, some look at me as if to sympathize others look at me as if I never get to watch a football game.  Sometimes I get that knowing look from dads that says aren't girls awesome!  There are those things that I may never understand about females, however I can tell you after living with 4 for the last 16 years of my life you do pick up on a few things, like when to shut up and say nothing, silence can be golden or other times it can be plutonium (totally radioactive with all the makings of a nuclear blast). 

Girls absolutely love to hear their dad say I love you, but they also can never hear it enough, girls love to be surprised and they can be as adventurous and do some of the same things you did as a boy growing up.  During the girls younger years on every other weekend their mom had to work at the hospital so we would go on adventures.  We visited the Laura Ingalls Wilder Home in Marshfield, Mo and one time we were in Branson and instead of turning north back towards home in the middle of the afternoon I thought it was to soon to end our adventure and we just headed to Arkanasas and had a great time together. 

Something that I can never do enough of and always want to do more of is take each of my daughters on dates for one on one time, its imperative to spend some quality time individually with each girl, and I always had a few rules on these dates

rule 1 I always paid
rule 2 she always picked the place or activity
rule 3 no technology if possible -
rule 4 talk to each other
rule 5 - get the door for her, chair for her and treat her as if this was her special night
rule 6 - if you can get a memento from this night - a movie ticket stub, a flower to her something for her.

There are a couple of things that are accomplished by doing this, 1) you get quality time with her and it helps her self image as she grows up and 2) and this is the biggie - she learns how a girl is to be treated when on a date.  You can be sure that you have set the bar when it comes to dating and she will be able to recognize what a gentlemen is and how she is supposed to be treated.

I admit there are subjects that are best handled by mom when it comes to daughters and I gladly abdicate those wholeheartedly, but my wife is excellent at pulling me in when its a good idea or telling me that she has got this.

The other thing I am learning about girls is that they grow up to be women, faster than you want them to be, and no matter when you see them you can still see your little girl.  If you have seen Father of the Bride - its the part where she is telling him she is getting married only he see's like a 4 year old- yeah that really happened the first time my daughter asked me for the keys to the car... Slam are you kidding me? when did that happen? 

Letting go is something that is really tough- you never really let go of them because they are part of you and you hold them with your heart, however you do let them make decisions and venture out, move out or stay in another state and then you feel something missing a piece of yourself is in the world that once came home to sleep under your roof each night - its the weirdest feeling it leaves you wanting to put everything back and I find myself frequently looking at pictures of putting 3 little girls on the bus or taking them to school.

I am still learning and still have millions to learn about the women God has blessed me in my life with however I am so grateful for each one of them each and every day.