In the Name of God, the Compassionate and Most Merciful Beloved Lord

Tomorrow marks the 12th anniversary of the horrific attacks on our country in New York and Washington, D.C. I will never forget that day, and it has been burned into my memory as if it had occurred yesterday. All across our country, we shall all stop to remember the victims of that terrible act of barbarism; remember the heroes who sacrificed their own lives to save others; remember the families who have had to suffer through living life without a father, or mother, or brother, or sister, or son, or daughter.

May our Beloved be with them all.

Indeed, we will never forget what happened on that fateful day. Yet, we must also never lose hope for the future. As our country sits on the brink of another war in the Middle East, we must always strive to be the best nation we can possibly be going forward. We must never lose hope that the voices of hatred and division in our country – who are loud and obnoxious – will always be drowned out by the voices of love and unity.

Our country’s greatness always shines supreme in the end: whether it is the Americans who formed human chains around mosques after 9/11 or how communities come together after tragedies – natural and otherwise – this greatness is in her people, and we must always let this greatness shine forth for all to see.

Never forget the past, but never lose hope that our future will be better for all.