Remembering 9/11

I wrote this post on my private blog for the 10th anniversary of September 11th last year.  Since I have the same thoughts and feelings about the day as I did last year, I have simply adapted it a little to fit this year.

 

Today is the 11th anniversary of the attacks on September 11th.  It's hard to believe it's been 11 years.  It's interesting to look back on the events of that day and how I reacted.  I was a sophomore in high school and, needless to say, I was a typical, self-concerned teenager.  Because I lived so far away from the attacks, I was for the most part, unaffected.  As I watched the planes crash into the twin towers and into the Pentagon, I was shocked and speechless.  I was sad for the people who were affected.  But aside from the momentary worry about possible future attacks elsewhere in the country, it didn't really affect my life personally.  As I have gotten older however, I have felt ashamed at the apathy I felt towards the events.  As I have gotten older, what happened that day and what the events mean for us as Americans, affect me so much more.  No longer am I the naive child that I was that day, free from the cares and worries of adulthood and the world.


Last year, on this day, I watched a documentary.  I wish I could remember what it is called because it really affected me.  It was about these two men that, to me, are real heroes.  After the plane hit the north tower, and after finding a way down to the ground that wasn't obscured by rubble, they went up to the floors above them looking for people who were stuck and needed a way out.  Instead of saving their own lives, they gave their lives to save so many others.  I can't help but think that they were blessed when they got to heaven for their compassion, charity, and sacrifice.

Now, eleven years later, I am grateful for what happened that day.  It's sounds weird to say I'm grateful for such a horrible event, but I am.  I am grateful for the heroes that cared more about saving the lives of their fellow men than they did for themselves.  I am grateful for those law enforcement and firefighters who gave of their time to help others.  I am grateful because I feel like it brought the nation together.  After that day, everywhere I went I saw American flags.  People were generally nicer to each other.  The terrorists who flew those planes into the twin towers and into the Pentagon, and the ones that were headed toward D.C. thought they would destroy America.  They thought that by attacking the U.S. they would destroy the spirit of the people.  But really, it made us stronger.  It made us closer.  It proved we can get through anything.  And that is something to be grateful for.  I am so proud to be an American!