3 Things to Remember About 9/11 and America

Michele Rigby Assad

The anniversary of the vicious attacks that happened September 11, 2001, is upon us.

Thirteen years ago, marks a time in history that no one will ever forget. To honor the memory of those that have fallen, I started out writing a terrorism-related post about the attacks that happened on that day. Then it dawned on me that I would prefer to write something uplifting and positive, even though we are facing an increase in terrorist threats, a topic that I write about a lot. This time, instead, I would like to take a moment and celebrate what makes our country—I mean YOU—so freaking great.

  1. Americans are very good at banding together to protect what we love. Think of the passengers of United flight 93. It didn’t matter what color, age, or ethnicity they were; they came together to take on the biggest threat of their lives. And, they succeeded in stopping the threat that could have killed hundreds of other innocents, though it meant losing their lives. They remind us of courage.
  2. Americans are very giving individuals, even when we don’t have much to give. Think of the men and women that helped each other climb down the steps of the Twin Towers and the other threatened buildings. These people took the journey more slowly to help friends, colleagues, and strangers make it down, one small step at a time. Some made it, and some did not. But they all remind us of honor.
  3. Americans are fiercely independent, while also being some of the most amazing team players in the world. Think of the men and women of our military, police, firefighters, FBI agents, CIA officers, government officials and hundreds of unnamed groups who rose to the challenge and kept moving. They kept serving despite overwhelming exhaustion to recover, protect, and support their fellow citizens. They remind us of dedication.

No matter whether you were in the line of fire or praying from the sidelines, we were—and still are—equal. This is the Feminine Collective’s homage to you Americans. We have a lot of problems to overcome, but we are still a great country. And we know that you would still give again if needed, no matter what the sacrifice. Thank you for that.

We will never forget 9/11

God bless our great country, America.

Written by 

After obtaining a masters degree in Arab Studies at Georgetown University, Michele applied—along with hundreds of others from the university--to work for the CIA. After a long and grueling hiring process and a year of intensive training, she became an intelligence officer for the National Clandestine Service, the covert (operational) arm of the Agency. Serving for a decade as a counterterrorism officer, Michele worked in all of the awful places you hope you’ll never visit, including Iraq during the height of the war. To date, Michele has traveled to 45 countries, lived in six of those, and has a lot of crazy stories to tell about life overseas. While working for the CIA, Michele initially decried the traits that made her different from senior male officers, but later realized that these traits were what made her a great intelligence officer (empathy, intuition, strong interpersonal skills). Now she’s on a mission to show women that they have the elements to be a Femme Fatale—the incredibly intelligent and operationally astute woman that gets stuff done. After years of service to her country, Michele has left the undercover life behind and now works as an international management consultant focused on Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. She has a more “normal” life now and a lot more time to do the things she loves: writing, cooking, traveling for pleasure, walking on the beach—and most of all, inspiring others!

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