What Makes a Family (2001)

I recently remembered that in the week of September 11, 2001, there were calls from many friends and families, and I sent an e-mail to confirm that there were no problems. There was a blog then. Around the world news media found my post - some bittersweet media exposure. In order to understand why September 11th every month is a more serious mystery than last time, I dug out my hard drive from a blog post on September 11, 2001 - the actual blog has been offline for many years was. This is some of what I learned after reading for the first time in nearly 16 years:

My family's favorite Thanksgiving tradition started in November 2001. A few weeks after the terrorist attack on 11th September, I sponsored a large dinner. Like many Americans, we are still shocked and still hurt. We have been thinking about families across the country, and their Thanksgiving dinner is never the same. When we finished that year, I brought a pack of cloth fences. I appreciate writing something on the tablecloth. Everyone in turn writes a text message on the fabric and we keep pens out every year. Notes about the family, our country, and our God's love are summarized in a complex puzzle of pale yellow fabric. Children's bills are hidden beside the message of appreciation, and the unstable sentences of grandmother Cusumano occupy a special position in the center of the mosaic.

Stephanie Coontz taught history and family research at Evergreen State University in Olympia, Washington State, served as Director of Research and Public Education at the Modern Family Council, and served as Chairman from 2001 to 2004. She is the author of "Marriage, History: Love conquers marriage" (Viking Press).