It's the 10 year Anniversary of the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks. There are some moments in our lives that completely shape the rest of your life and how you see the world. There are also moments like these that you will never forget. 9/11 is one of those moments. I was on my way to school, it was sophomore year, every year we go to the middle of the woods and participate in a Ropes Course- my mom was driving me to school early. I had asked her to stop at Safeway so I could pick up candy for my friends for lunch. We got back in the car and turned on the radio, listening to KMEL- what we heard on the radio sounded like a movie advertisement. the DJs were saying something about the first tower getting hit. I really thought it was a movie, and then a commercial break happened- My mother and I looked at each other and were in shock. It wasn't until I got to school and the principal strated to pull those of us aside who they knew had family in NY before I realized what had happened. But without seeing it on TV it still didn't make much sense.
It wasn't until school ended and I was able to go home that I realized what had happened. Threats had been made on San Francisco, so there was a Bay Area wide curfew.
Sitting in front of CNN, I was finally able to see the images that had been splashed all over the news all day long. It was such a tragic scene, I didn't know if my family was alright, remember at this time I wasn't in contact with my dad's side of the family. But while I knew that my world could be rocked, I wasn't just worried about my family, but I was worried about the world, my country and all of the others who knew instntly that their loved ones weren't coming back. It was also really telling and frustrating how quickly blame spread.
It was disheartning for me over the next few days after 9/11 how qucikly violence spread against people of Middle Eastern descent, it seemed like every day more and more people were inciting violence against the people they blamed for the deaths of thousands.
10 years ago I was 15 years old. 9/11 for me, like many others has forever shaped how I see the world. For a person who lived 15 years without this fear of war, since 9/11 war is all I have really known. Tracking the number of deaths over seas, seeing friends enlist and go abroad; and waiting for the next "big" attack on the U.S. There is a new normal in this country and in this world today, all because of the events of 9/11. For my niece, I don't think she'll really be able to grasp what 9/11 meant for all of us. For my god daughter, she will only know that there is a hieghtened sense of state, that men and women died for our right to live, for our right to "fight back." No matter where we stand in the world, 9/11 will always be a day that is marked with a somber attitude. These images will live on and hopefully the lessons of such a tragic day will force us to continue to grow into better people each time.
I don't know if I see the world in a better light because of what happened, but I do know that it is something that is not a distant memory, but something that for me is lived almost every moment of my life. I think that is what unifies us on 9/11, there are many families who lost loved ones, who will never get those minutes back, but for all of us, we all lost a piece of what was "normal" for us.
So to all those who lost their lives, and who continue to put their lives on the line for us all each day- Thank you! 9/11 is a day we will never forget, but a day that will remind us to live each moment as the best examples of ourselves. It's not just God Bless America, but really God Bless the world!
