How the Memories of 9/11 Can Help You Focus on What Matters: A Review of Beyond Stone and Steel
by www.SixWise.com
"Three buildings, four planes, thousands
dead. Where were
you when you heard the news? Where did you go?"
--Beyond Stone and Steel
This sixth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks impacts us all
in different ways. Those in the buildings and on the planes,
their families and friends, may feel remorse, anger, or regret.
Others further removed experience sympathy, or perhaps uncertainty
of what the future holds.
Most everyone, however, has the chance to look back on that
tragic day as one of transformation.
A wake-up call to what really matters in life.
Beyond
Stone and Steel: A Tribute to the Victims of September 11,
2001, written by Brian W. Vaszily, columnist and author
of Sixwise.com's "Live Deeper" blog, is a message
of hope to everyone who needs to find their life's silver
lining.
Unlike other 9/11 accounts that replay the day's events,
Beyond Stone and Steel is a tribute to those who died
in the attacks, told through their own voices.
Readers get a glimpse of the very thoughts that were passing
through victims' minds in the minutes surrounding each phase
of the disaster -- from first the mundane, "He would
no longer gorge on pastrami sandwiches at lunch," and
later, as the morning unfolds, the pure realization of what
was most important to them: their families, their friends,
their personal dreams.
The fictional characters in this book are as real as you
and I. As were the thousands of victims on 9/11.
But perhaps, right now, you are plowing headlong through
your day, worrying about bills or your job, holding on to
resentments over minor bickering with your spouse or best
friend, letting the driver in the next lane set off your temper.
And that is exactly why you need to read Beyond Stone
and Steel.
Though told in the poignant setting of one of the world's
greatest tragedies, Beyond Stone and Steel is a brilliant
story of hope, one that has great importance for everyone,
in every stage of their life.
Vaszily's accounts of what goes through one's mind at the
moment of truth -- the young solider killed in the Pentagon,
the firefighter running UP the stairs while everyone else
runs out, or the man trapped in the building's rubble who
longs for his wife -- will make you want to hug your children
tighter than ever, kiss your spouse like you did when you
first met, and call up every old friend you've lost touch
with.
In other words, it will instantly make clear what really
matters in life.
And what better result could come of a tragedy than an affirmation
of life, and a lesson to treasure it each and every day?
Whether you are looking for a way to reflect on the events
of 9/11, or would like to rediscover the inspiration in your
own life, Beyond
Stone and Steel is your beacon of light.
This little classic will become one of the most treasured,
and necessary, books in your home library.
Recommended Reading
Effective
Ways to Deal with Sadness and Grief, Part 1
Why
We're Living (Far) Shorter Lives Than Ever, and What to Do
About It