The Brain Vs. Reality...

I can recall the time when I was a kid my Mom called me in for dinner one hot summer day. I can't recall exactly what I had been doing, but I do remember being hot and very thirsty. I was the last of my brothers to make it inside and found that the table was almost set. In my spot was a very familiar looking dark brown Tupperware cup filled about three quarters of the way full... I was glad to see it. I asked one of my brothers what was in the cup to drink (you really can't tell inside those dark cups like that, other than milk). He told me it was water, and at that point my brain sent messages to my mouth to prepare for a cool refreshing coming. Without questioning I quickly picked up the cup and began to quench my thirst. Boy, was I in for a rude awakening... it was not water! Inside my Tupperware tumbler was very tart lemonade! There was no way my brain was prepared for such a reality. 
This morning I'm doing a lot of remembering. As I sit and contemplate my heart I am drawn to the memories of 10 years ago. My devotion this morning had to do with the confidence of being with the Lord even upon death (2 Cor. 5:8). This weekend was busy, but good. And I don't think I've really allowed for myself, personally the time to pause and reflect on the events of 9-11.
I had gone to the church office as usual... the church I served at the time had a daycare. My routine was to spend a little bit of time with the kids as they ate breakfast... just silly stuff and high fives. I remember being in my office when the secretary came in saying that Angela, my wife, was on the phone and that a plane had crashed into a building in New York. Even before speaking to my wife immediately my mind tried to picture what I had just heard.  But I soon found out that the picture I had in my mind did not even begin to capture the reality of what was happening.
Rushing to find a TV to watch the coverage I saw the second plane hit the other tower... even witnessing it myself seemed like something from a movie and not for real. Then the news of the Pentagon and Pennsylvania came in. Questions began to enter my head of 'what's next?' and 'is my family safe?'.
As I look back on those brief moments in my office when I first received the news, I realize that there was no way my brain was prepared for the reality of what was really happening.