[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 16]
[House]
[Pages 21306-21307]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        SEPTEMBER 11 OBSERVANCES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. LOWEY. As we mark the eighth anniversary of the tragic terrorist 
attacks on our country, we are reminded of the adage that ``time heals 
all wounds.'' At Ground Zero, bulldozers are laying the foundation for 
new towers, while millions carry on their daily routine. Many who lost 
spouses have remarried, finding comfort in new love. Infants have grown 
into children and children into adults, with thoughts that dwell on the 
future, rather than the past.

[[Page 21307]]

  For this we should be grateful. No one should live in the perpetual 
shadow of grief. And yet the wounds are still raw. New Yorkers still 
perceive the skyline of Manhattan as maimed and incomplete. We are 
still gripped at certain moments by memories of loved ones that are 
unbearably painful. We are still at war, bearing the unfinished burden 
of rooting out the perpetrators and instigators of evil. And as a 
Nation, as a people, we understand that the innocence shattered on that 
awful morning 8 years ago can never be fully restored.
  Our challenge then, as Americans, is to honor the loss and heed the 
lessons of 9/11, while also affirming at every opportunity the optimism 
and confidence that always defined this great Nation at its best. In 
this body, we do this by remaining strong and steadfast in our 
determination to confront terrorists and their sponsors, using the full 
spectrum of American power as an instrument of justice. We do this by, 
together with the firefighters, police officers, emergency workers and 
intelligence officers, committing to the hard work of securing our land 
against those who would do violence, ensuring that our transportation 
networks and energy facilities, our ports and our bridges are defended 
by more than feckless hope.
  We do this by refusing to give up our liberties out of fear, knowing 
that a retreat from our founding values does more harm to America than 
any external enemy ever could. And we do this by pursuing the age-old 
American vision of a world lifted by freedom, knowledge and prosperity 
in which all men and women have the tools to build just and decent 
societies that live in peace with their neighbors.
  It has been my duty and honor to serve and to serve those goals as a 
Member of the United States Congress. In tribute to all those who lost 
their lives 8 years ago, to all those who have lost their lives in 
Iraq, in Afghanistan in the time since, and to all those whose lives 
are still shaped every day by memory and loss, let us together commit 
to upholding these responsibilities until our work is done.
  Thank you. May God bless America, and may God bless all people of 
goodwill.

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