September, 2026... Twenty-five years have come and gone Since a Tuesday morning Changed America forever. And somehow... September skies Have never looked the same. It started like a Tuesday Folks were heading off to work Coffee cups and morning traffic Kids getting ready for school Then televisions started showing Something we couldn't understand And before that morning ended The whole world had changed There were mothers calling children There were husbands calling wives Just trying to say "I love you" One more time And underneath those clear blue skies We learned how fast this life can change Twenty-five years have come and gone But we still remember their names September skies have never been the same Twenty-five years haven't washed away the pain From New York to the Pentagon To a field in Pennsylvania Ordinary people showed us What courage really meant Some ran from the fire Some went running in And on one of our darkest mornings We became united again Twenty-five years later There's a promise that remains— We'll never forget that morning Under those September skies While thousands hurried down those stairs They shouldered gear and started up They didn't know how high they'd make it They just knew somebody needed them Police and medics filled the streets Strangers reached for strangers' hands Nobody stopped to ask a name They just helped 'em where they stood And somewhere over Pennsylvania Ordinary people made a choice They couldn't change where they were going But they could make sure others made it home Heroes didn't all wear uniforms Some never wore a badge Some were simply everyday Americans Who gave everything they had September skies have never been the same Twenty-five years haven't washed away the pain From New York to the Pentagon To a field in Pennsylvania Ordinary people showed us What courage really meant Some ran from the fire Some went running in And on one of our darkest mornings We became united again Twenty-five years later There's a promise that remains— We'll never forget that morning Under those September skies There's a generation growing up Who only knows that day from pictures They've seen the smoke and heard the stories But they weren't there to remember So tell 'em why those flags went up On porches all across this land Tell 'em why complete strangers Reached out and took each other's hands Tell 'em twenty-five years ago They tried to tear this country apart But when the dust finally settled They hadn't broken America's heart There weren't neighbors fighting neighbors For a little while we understood— United wasn't just a word It was something that we stood Maybe twenty-five years later We could stand to remember again Not the hatred that divided us But how we loved our fellow man How churches filled with people How flags hung from every home How somebody you'd never met before Didn't have to hurt alone We can't change what happened We can't bring back those we lost But we can remember what they taught us About courage... Love... And what being united costs September skies have never been the same And twenty-five years haven't erased a single name From New York to the Pentagon To that field in Pennsylvania We remember every life And every family that was changed We remember those who ran When everybody else ran out We remember ordinary people Who showed us what courage was about They tried to break America But something happened instead— We stood a little closer And raised our flag again So twenty-five years later Let this promise still remain— As long as there are September skies We'll never forget their names Twenty-five years... And that blue September sky Still takes us back there. So teach the ones who weren't here. Remember the ones who were. And never forget... September 11th, 2001.
