This morning was like how it was on that September 11th. Every one of the senses is sharp and full of contrast: the sun is bright, the roar of the traffic surrounds everything, the touch is cool and dry, the taste of coffee fills the mouth, the smell of bacon and eggs fills the air. My dad is in the hospital as was then.
What is different this time around is the numbness. The intensity of the last year, the last two years, the last three years is like any type of drug resistance, where more and more is required to obtain the same results. VH1’s “Best Week Ever” commented on the “Extreme” kick, where everything is now not merely big, super-sized, or colossal, but EXTREME. We demand intensity 24-7 all the time. Fight! Now! Love! Now! Work! Now! Look folks, our number one world problem is extremists.
We like to think the U.S. to be a country of superheroes. Well, we’re not. The terrorists think that we’re spending every waking moment being the Great Satan and pounding on innocent Muslims. Well, we’re not, either. We’re just doing what everyone else is doing, trying to figure out how to make ends meet, pursuing the pursuit of happiness (usually following some sort of ordered religious/philosophical system), and generally just wanting to be left alone. Is that really so extreme?