That's a quote from Ernest Hemingway. I heard recently, though I can't remember where or when, that it's from "The Old Man and the Sea."
The first time I read that quote was earlier this year, in the midst of what now seems like an incredibly self-indulgent crisis. It appeared in my mailbox, on the cover of a card from my dear friend Michelle, and a few days later I tacked it to the wall in my office. I have looked at that card a thousand times since then, and every time I do, I am filled with hope.
Michelle works in DC, and her company had five floors in one of the towers. Out of 600 employees, they only lost one.
They only lost one. That's supposed to be a good thing now.
That's FDR, the day after Pearl Harbor. It's also on a piece of paper taped to rear windshield of my car.
We thought we were indestructible. We thought we were invincible. We weren't. But just like back then, it doesn't mean the game is over.
It means the game has only just begun.
The world breaks everyone. It has broken us, no question. But we can heal, even be stronger in the broken places.
Certainly, we will be stronger in the places we can see. We'll have stronger buildings, and stronger airplanes, and stronger "security," whatever that will end up meaning.
But the not-so-visible places will heal, too. Our hearts. Our minds.
We will gain the inevitable triumph. And the triumph won't be planes that can't be hijacked, or buildings that can't be demolished. It won't be Osama bin Laden's head on a spike, or even the complete eradication of terrorism.
No, our triumph will be hearts and minds that are not only no longer broken, but stronger.
Stronger than we ever thought they could be.
