Twenty years is a long time. But I remember where I was, and who was lost; and that those who have been lost weren’t all lost on that fateful day in New York but have fallen in the years since from post-traumatic stress, diseases from dealing with contaminants, and a host of other issues.

Many far more eloquent than me have ruminated on the meaning of today. I do not intend to add to their words, for they can say with more grace what is in my heart. What I do want to honor today is the thread of the makers.

Since the pandemic began in early 2020, we have been meeting weekly on Saturdays at noon Pacific via Zoom to continue the work of makers and craftspersons from before recorded time began. We weave, knit, color, paint, make tea, do dishes, and even sometimes sneak in some work emails – but all in the company of others who create, who know what it is to feel that power within oneself, that power that we lose so often in modern life when beset by the incessant chatter of “social” media. That’s the chimera of it: it’s not “social,” it’s algorithmically controlled for maximum engagement from the consumer: us. To take our attention back, therefore, becomes a radical act.

So today I offer you this: turn away from the world, a go within: to that place inside where you harbor your making. Whether it’s cooking, or craft, or writing, or woodworking – whatever that making is, do some today. And if it’s been long since you have opened the door in your mind where that place dwells, just sit and think about it and consider how you might invite that place back into your daily round.

We are stronger together, and we are more grounded when we make. Hand to hand, and heart to heart.

Namaste.