A Thank you
By Austin Gray
I really want to thank all of those who came to the gym this Sunday (September 11, 2016). Days like these where we honor those who have fallen mean a lot to me. And I try and take every chance I get to make sure that those who have passed didn’t lose their lives for something useless. Today’s workout meant much much more to me than just improving my fitness, I wanted to suffer. I wanted to suffer because these men and women, their families, and their friends suffered significantly more than I ever have in my life. I believe it is not fair for those of us who are much more fortunate to not have to endure something that devastating not to take a second and think how fortunate we are and how blessed we are to be able to wake up every day of our lives in a home that provides warmth, surrounded by people who love us and want nothing more than for each one of us to succeed. Personally, there were a few times where I wanted to stop moving and take a second to catch my breath and ease the pain I was feeling during the WOD. Whenever that happens though, especially in a hero workout, I dig deep and find that seventh gear. That seventh gear is all the people who have suffered and lost so much but still find a way to keep on living every single day and make the most of it. I know I complain about a lot of things, inside and outside of the gym; but when it comes down to it, what I complain about means nothing. And I think it is important for all of us to know that. Whether it changes you or not is your choice, but I ask that the next time something happens to you, that doesn’t fall in your favor, take a step back and know that there is someone who is out there, someone who has lost almost every single thing they hold dear, yet they power through all that pain and suffering and are able to find the good, even in the worst of situations.
“The images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory – hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless September sky; the Twin Towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the Pentagon; the wreckage of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction.
And yet we know that the worst images are those that were unseen to the world. The empty seat at the dinner table. Children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father. Parents who would never know the feeling of their child’s embrace. Nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts.
On September 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the American people came together. We offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our blood. We reaffirmed our ties to each other, and our love of community and country. On that day, no matter where we came from, what God we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were, we were united as on American family.”
Barack Obama
