Maddenation
Remembrance of 9/11
I couldn’t let this week end without acknowledging the anniversary of the most horrific day of my life thus far. I felt like I sort of missed the day. Being the 7th day of school, I was swamped with a ton of things to do, preoccupied with my own thoughts of what I needed to get done in the present. I wore the patriotic red, white, and blue — actually a nice knit shirt with a flag and a “United States of America” on it, covered by a blue sweater with white stripes and red stars, given to me by mom. I wore a red barrette in my hair. Beyond that, I tried to catch some news stories commemorating the event, or at least something out of NYC. Then the day and the night were over and it was Friday. I felt like I missed it. I felt a little empty, like I should have done more.
Then, luckily, last night I caught some specials about that day on CNN and a local news channel out here. The first hour was pretty difficult to get through. I spoke with a friend who asked “Did you get all teary-eyed?” in a somewhat sarcastic tone of voice. Unimpressed with the level of understanding, I responded how I thought it was impossible for any American not to get upset when re-watching the events of that day.
I don’t know that I have anything important to say. And even if I did, I don’t know that I could express it. As I watched the planes hit the building, listened to the people talking and yelling about what they saw, my entire body clenched up in pain, just thinking about the people who died and the holes they left in the lives of their loved ones. It’s absolutely amazing. In a terrible way. The only thing I could think of was to pray to God, and this time, because I really needed Him. A test of faith. The only test that actually counts or matters.
I thank God every day that I have you, my family in my life. It’s unfathomable what it would be like to lose any of you, as happened to 2828 people in New York alone. I think that the anniversary of 9/11 deserves our attention and our utmost respect at the very least for those people who died on that day.
Kathleen • Memories • 09/14/03 • 1 comments
Comments
Dad • 09/14/03 • 8:26 PM:As the anniversary of 9/11 came and went, I too thought about doing more, perhaps posting an entry on maddenation to express some of my complex thoughts on the attack and its aftermath. I missed the opportunity, partly because of the everyday living that must go on, and partly because of the uncommon difficulty associated with thinking and writing about such monumental events. Thank you, Kathleen, for reminding me.
I remember the day rather well. Mom called me from work to tell me to turn on the TV, that a plane had hit the World Trade center. I remember the strangeness of that dark smoke rising out of the north tower, the unbelievable shock of the second plane hitting the other tower, and the cold fear at the announcement that a third plane had hit the Pentagon. The Pentagon! We were under attack, and it wasn’t over yet, and the president was flying around to country in Air Force One, unable to return to Washington until this catastrophic situation was somehow gotten under control.
Then came news of the plane crash in Pennsylvania and the unfolding story about the passengers who found out about their likely fate and decided to go down fighting. “Let’s roll” was their battle cry, as powerful as any we’ve heard in our history classes. They might have said, “We have not yet begun to fight,” or “Damn the boxcutters, full speed ahead,” or even, “We have but one life to give for our country.” These are uniquely American words, exemplifying our independence, our confidence, our patriotism. Of the many who had heroism thrust upon them that day, Todd Beamer and his compatriots on flight 93 are the ones I recognized first and will remember the longest. They are also the ones I would most readily hope to emulate, should I ever find myself in such horrifying circumstances.
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