We crossed the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in the middle of the night, after one a.m. As we crossed the bridge, to the left, the Statue of Liberty was visible. Beyond her, we could see the smoke blowing out over the water from the destroyed twin towers. I remember saying to Margie, “Our world is changed forever.” Little did I know how accurate that statement actually was.
We arrived in the city about two in the morning. The streets were not deserted at that time of night as I would have expected. Several people standing and talking waved at us as we approached our destination.
A silence existed in the city that was surreal. There were no sirens, horns, people chattering or construction noises as we had heard on previous trips. A pall of death, fear and apprehension hung over Manhattan like a dense cloud.
America, once again, went to war. Retaliation seemed logical, but the terrorists thought their attack was retaliation. They saw America as the invading force when we attacked Saddam Hussain’s Republican Guard in Kuwait in 1991. By invading their sacred land, the fight was on. It is not my place to say if that was right or wrong but it started a fight that would last for generations. Actually, I should say it continued a fight that began 4000 years ago between Sarah and Hagar (Genesis 21: 10).Always remember, everyone is a terrorist to someone.
After a twenty-one year war, America left Afghanistan and gave it back to the Taliban. The radical Muslim terrorists are in this for the duration. They do not care how long it takes; one hundred years, two hundred, it doesn’t matter. History has repeated itself; it’s April 30, 1975 (fall of Saigon) all over again.
America and the world have not even begun to grasp the enormity of this Afghanistan takeover by the Taliban. The future course of everything changed in less than two weeks. The momentum has shifted and it’s clearly not in our direction.
“Freedom fighters,” alias “terrorists” now have a home base from which to organize, plan and attack. Twenty years of American lives, limbs, money and equipment are suddenly rendered wasted. We are right back where we started twenty years ago. Many believe we are farther behind. The radicals have been given a new “lease-on-life,” and no doubt they will take full advantage of the opportunity.
The damage to our lives has been earth-shattering since 9-11 and in some cases, beyond reason. Americans are being surveilled continuously. Our conversations are being recorded and many, (of what we once considered personal and private) aspects of our lives are being closely monitored. We now have a generation that see these actions as normal and do not realize, our freedoms are being taken.
Data bases are being compiled of our gun ownership, friendships and locations. Anyone with a smart phone or recently manufactured vehicle can be constantly tracked. Privacy is no more; we are all suspects by the government. Our “Smart-TV’s” and voice activated devices are watching and listening. Radicals are constantly moving into the U.S. without examination, but citizens are being scrutinized relentlessly.
We have come back into the U.S. numerous times in the last twenty-four years from international travel. We have been threatened, intimidated, searched, accused of stealing a passport (I told the agent to scan it again; he did and it was approved), harassed, had our things thrown away or confiscated. We’ve been told one thing in JFK and another in Miami. The word “mess” does not adequately describe entering the U.S.A. The foreigners usually are superficially checked but Americans are vetted beyond reason.
Once in New York City, we set up the mobile kitchen unit to be ready to prepare breakfast for first responders by morning. The unit was capable of preparing 15,000 meals per day. National DR set us up under the Brooklyn Bridge. Later, intelligence determined the bridge was considered for a second New York target.
We camped out in a warehouse under the bridge. It was full of supplies sent in by civic groups, churches, fire departments and many others. We were told there were seven such warehouses around the city.
We had gone to New York in our Nissan pick-up. We were drafted to haul supplies to Ground Zero. There was a fireman from Louisville with us. The three of us crammed into the front of the Nissan. Most loads were taken between midnight and dawn. We hauled gloves, coffee, lip balm, side grinders, sledge hammers, cheese crackers, peanut butter and anything else the site workers needed.
Near Ground Zero, even after a week or more, there was a smell in the air. Several times we smelt human flesh burning. We had grit in our teeth and I’m sure in our lungs. Walking down a street near the site, even at night, we could see thick layers of gray, powdery concrete through store windows.
The first day the stock exchange opened, I was on Wall Street. I talked to a broker that had come out for a smoke. I asked him what the market was doing. He described the fall as a blood bath.
The on-site workers to whom we delivered supplies did not talk. When I asked where to put supplies, they usually just pointed. The only response I remember was a statement of appreciation when we delivered coffee pots and coffee.
We had a little rest time during the days. Most all the work we did was between midnight and dawn. During the day, barricades were blocking the site several blocks out from Ground Zero.
2 Chronicles 7: 14 “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
It appears America needs prayer as much now as we did then. I’m sure there are radicals in caves in central Asia, (and several American cities) planning the next attack. This is not an “if,” but a “when.” I know this is not a pleasant subject to address but it is reality. We are dealing with a level of determination not seen in an enemy of America ever before.
Many on both sides see this as a war between good and evil. Which is good and which is evil depends on what side you are on. One of the many problems with war is that both sides see themselves as being right.
From a Christian writer/ evangelist point of view, I see the only salvation as being (Acts 4: 12) through a faith based belief and relationship with our Lord, Christ Jesus. The Bible through prophesy, proves itself from within itself. This faith has a foundation that cannot be circumvented or disproven. Our Savior was crucified for the remission of sin and resurrected.
America must return to God if we stand a chance of survival. Citizens acknowledging any Christian connection have, for the first time, dropped to below fifty percent. Just as Belshazzar saw the hand-writing on the wall (Daniel 5: 5) we are seeing the hand-writing on our wall.
Many great nations have come to an end because they became divided or strayed away from God. Why would we think we can survive in either condition? Psalm 91: 1 “He that dwells in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”
The 9-11 terrorist attack brought us together; united, like nothing since the Pearl Harbor attack. Can we expect to survive in our current state? Psalm 14: 34 “Righteousness exalts a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.”
Van Yandell is a retired Industrial Arts teacher, an ordained gospel evangelist and missionary.