It was a little over two weeks ago that this country remembered and honored 9/11/01 and the lives that were lost on that day. Did you feel it?

I assume in writing this that most people would rather not be reminded or have seen enough about it to last a lifetime. Some of you may be from other countries and did not feel the effects. Or perhaps you are not from the NY area and felt it the same way we here felt the Oklahoma City bombing. We knew it was horrible, but it had not shaken us to our core. Here, in the NY tri-state area, we have been shaken. We really felt it.

I never understood (as a person that was raised Jewish) why the Jews couldn't stop talking about the holocaust. Why couldn't they just let it go and move on? ---Enough, already! Now, I understand. As much as we'd like to dismiss the memory of 9/11 for the sake of our psyche and happiness, we have to remember. We have to remember so we don't forget. If we forget, we fall back into complacency and leave ourselves open to harm.

Now, that doesn't feel like a way to live, does it? Always vigilant and being on the defensive----that sounds exhausting. It would be draining to have our operating system become based on fear. The fuel to our bodies would become adrenaline as we stood in a constant state of choosing to fight or flee. The question then becomes, how do we remember and not live in the vigilant shadow of fear? The answer: we love. We love ourselves, our families, our lives, our work, our community, our environment, our humanity and our renewable spirit. We love in order to strengthen our resolve and to fortify our ability to rise up again if need be. To live in fear or to live in a love that equals a resounding respect for ourselves, our lives and life in general. Which would you choose?

By love, I am not referring just to self-pampering or being kind to each other. That's good too, but I am talking about refusing to make decisions from a place of fear which we really have done for years even before more recent worries about personal safety and national security. Keeping a job you hat to pay the bills, staying in dysfunctional relationships because it's easier than being alone, ignoring bad habits because they have become the status quo are all ways we live in fear.

In case you've been experiencing an uneasiness lately that you can't quite name or have been feeling restless in your job or your life, know that what I am pointing out is at work in you. Change has been in the air. Do you feel it?

If you do not ultimately trust yourself and trust the flow of life, you will find it hard to make a change, no matter how unhappy you are. If you don't trust the feeling that you need to be doing something else or the feeling that the writing is on the wall at your job or the feeling that you are settling, you miss the opportunity to grow and move on. Not knowing what is over the horizon is not easy to endure but knowing you will ultimately not let yourself down, will get you through. That is love, too. That is believing that you can make it and that it will be OK.

Choose remembering so you don't forget. Choose love instead of fear. Choose to honor what we have lost in order to appreciate what we have gained. Do you feel it now? Let it inspire you. Do something great.

Editors Note: Laura Berman Fortgang is a Life Satisfaction Expert, Author and Speaker. She is the author of “Living Your Best Life” and “Take Yourself to the Top.” Check out her website www.LauraBermanFortgang.com. For information on her InterCoach programs, private coaching with Laura, media opportunities, or inviting Laura to speak at your company or organization, please contact her at 1 888-23Coach or 973 857-8180 or email her LBF@LauraBermanFortgang.com