Today marks the 24th anniversary of the terrorist murders at the World Trade Center and the hijacking of a plane carrying innocent Americans that eventually crashed in a Pennsylvania field. It’s hard to believe that we now live among an entire generation who were not alive yet when that happened; to me, it only seems like three or four years ago!

While I generally try to keep my columns light-hearted, that’s difficult to do on 9/11. No matter how many years pass, my mind automatically returns to the TV on that day.

I was in a women’s Tuesday morning bowling league in Broken Bow and was at the bowling alley when the news flashed across the screen. I vividly recall the silence that fell over the building as we all stood and watched the TVs above the lanes in horror as we witnessed, in real time, the second plane hit the tower. The wave of shock and fear that overcame me in that moment was something I have never experienced before or since, and I pray I never have to again.

Needless to say, we did not finish our games that day. We all packed up our shoes and balls and headed home, eager to get to our loved ones and not knowing what was coming next.

I’m guessing as you read this, your own memories are flooding your mind too. We all remember where we were that day, don’t we? And if you’re like me, thinking about it even today, 24 years later, brings tears to your eyes.

What I did experience for the first time that September and in the months following that I wish we could relive was the patriotism and unity among the American people. Suddenly, which side of the political aisle you are on was irrelevant. We are all U.S. citizens, and we were hated and under attack. How quickly we have forgotten.

We need to be teaching our children that we do, in fact, still have very real enemies. And our enemy is not a brash man with orange hair, or an old man who barely remembers his name, or an African-American woman looking to use her race and gender to shatter the glass ceiling. There are people who hate us simply because of who we are and what we have, and who love keeping us distracted as we fight within ourselves.

That’s how an enemy operates. Through fear and intimidation. But can I tell you a secret? We win. Just like the men on United Airlines Flight 93, we can bravely take charge - refusing to live afraid. On this day, I encourage you to take a stand for our rights, for our freedom, for the American way of life.

Let’s Roll.