Last week I did something every American MUST do: visit the newly opened 9/11 Memorial in New York City.
If you speak in the language of history, this was a turning point. As one person described, 9/11 happened in OUR life and therefore it’s OUR catastrophe.
In the future, it will be A catastrophe. But it is still OURS. If you have a U.S. passport, this Memorial was created for YOU.
If you speak in the language of energy, the 3,000 souls lost on 9/11/01 are stirring amidst this stone and steel cathedral. Being there, you are both haunted and transfixed. An energy moves you to stand tall, to be quiet, to pay attention.
I will skip 99% of what lies in the Memorial. You need to see it for yourself.
But there is one part I need to share. It’s not for the faint of heart, but it will wake you up today. And if it can awaken just one of you, it’s worth sharing.
In a small alcove of the Memorial, there is a section about those people who, overwhelmed with heat and smoke, jumped or fell from the Twin Towers.
James Gilroy, a distraught bystander on that fateful morning, described one woman in the moments before she jumped:
“She had a business suit on, her hair all askew. This woman stood there for what seemed like minutes and then she held down her skirt and jumped off the ledge. I thought, how human, how modest, to hold down her skirt before she jumped. I couldn’t look anymore.”
This woman came to her final moment, horror racing through, ramshackling her memories of her family and friends, shattering the windows of her reality… and even then, EVEN THEN… she did it with dignity.
EVEN THEN, she found the grace and repose to stand tall… to hold down her skirt as she jumped.
If she can find such dignity while staring over the edge of life, 1300 feet above the ground…
…how can we not do it too?!
We have our lives and for that we are blessed.
To anyone out there who is crumpled up in a ball of stress or anxiety or fear…
…let’s honor that lady who found the dignity and strength to hold down her skirt before she jumped from the edge of the World Trade Center.
Today…stand taller, be kinder, live deeper. @yeahdave (Click to Tweet!)
Just like that lady, you too are strong.
David “Yeah Dave” Romanelli has played a major role in pioneering the modernization of wellness in the United States. He believes wellness and feeling good is so much more than fancy yoga poses, green juice, and tight-fitting clothes. Dave launched his career fusing ancient wellness practices with modern passions like exotic chocolate, fine wine, and gourmet food by creating Yoga + Chocolate, Yoga + Wine, and Yoga for Foodies. His debut book, Yeah Dave’s Guide to Livin’ the Moment, reached #1 on the Amazon Self-Help Bestseller List. Check out his new show Yeah Dave! and discover more about his journey on www.yeahdave.com. Also, Dave will be launching a modern approach to meditation, called MeditateON, very soon, and teaming up with Happier to bring to you a Meditation Vacation.
