October immediately brings thoughts of pumpkin spice coffee, chilly evenings, the smell of smoke from a fireplace, burnished leaves changing with the season...and while each one of these are predictably inspirational in their own right during this month, I was inspired by something else and I'd like to share that experience with you.
Think Gander, Newfoundland. That's right...Gander, Newfoundland. If you wonder where this is going, Gander was the town of no more than 10,000 residents built on a "rock" off the coast of Canada. It was the temporary landing space for 38 planes carrying nearly 7,000 people on the morning of 9/11 when all planes were ordered to come down out of United States airspace.
While the world was rocked by the horrific images we all saw in real time that fateful morning, the residents of Gander and Lewisporte banded together in strength to support the "Plane People" (as they became known). From the mayor to the bus drivers; the school teachers and the ASPCA, all cooked meals and filled their homes and community centers with people whose lives would be forever changed.
Once more, the power of the human spirit rose above their own fear and they welcomed these strangers who were simply traveling from one continent to another on that beautiful September morning. No one truly knew if there may be another person on board any of those 38 planes who was destined to do harm; they only knew that they must help those who needed comfort.
I was fortunate to be invited by a friend to see an afternoon showing on Broadway of "Come From Away"; the story of Gander, Newfoundland and its citizens. It was a musical that was powerful; yet gently moving. It made me weep; it made laugh; it made me hurt; it gave me joy....but most of all, it made me remember.
May we never forget that day that changed history and stole the innocence from all of us. But may we also never forget that we have the ability to be the hands that can help someone else.
