Never Forget

September 11^th, 2011

            I was walking to my 3^rd period music class with Mr. Schutt, I was in 7^th grade and school had just begun a couple of weeks ago. I was getting more and more used to middle school and did not have a serious care in the world but brought with me many petty cares such as how does my hair look, am I wearing the right clothes, etc. I had your average seventh grade mentality, little did I know this was about to change forever. As I neared the class, I saw my twin brother Joe and he stopped me in the hall right outside of our class, next to the cafeteria. He asked me if I heard yet to which I replied I had no idea what he was talking about. He began telling me about how two planes were flown into the world trade center in New York City and America was under attack. I did not fully understand what was happening, nor did I understand the significance of what had happened but I did know that something was not right, especially when I began to see how the teachers were reacting. We sat all through music class in dead silence with our eyes glued to the television. As I went through the rest of that day, everyone, especially the adults, seemed to be in a trance and simply going through the motions like their mind was in a place far from our tiny school in Plainfield. As school ended I remember that Joe and I walked back home with our friend Brian Goff and once we got home our Mom (my memory is blurry here… so you can help me out mom) told us to go outside and play some baseball rather than continue to watch the horrible events that were unfolding right in front of our eyes on the television screen. I remember playing baseball and still not fully understanding what was going on nor understanding the great impact that this event would have on my life, the live of the American people, and the world. The rest of the night is a blur to me and I do not remember much, perhaps I have blocked it out of my memory or perhaps I just did not get the significance of the events. I do remember discussing the events the next day in a lot of my classes and the teachers trying to explain this incredibly difficult topic to all of us. Those are the events that I remember from 10 years ago today.

            More than the events I remember the reactions, I remember the first responders who bravely went in when everyone else was running out, I remember the spirit of good will being reawakened within us, I remember everyone going out of their way to help each other out, I remember the flood of patriotism and all of the American flags that adorned every household, I remember the worldwide response that let us know we were not alone in our suffering. These are the things I remember most. It is sad that we needed a tragedy like 9/11 to remind us how we should treat each other every day, while at the same time it was reassuring to know that every human being has the ability to treat each other well and that we as a human race can come together in times of great need and provide for each other, just as we are supposed to. The hijackers on 9/11 were trying to destroy our buildings, our way of life, and most of all our confidence and American spirit. While they managed to destroy our buildings, and affected our way of life forever, they were never able to touch our American spirit. They were never able to touch the human spirit that lives inside of all of us worldwide and connects us as brothers and sisters. They reminded us that human beings can sink to unbelievable depths and commit incredible acts of hatred but also that we have it in our capacity to soar into the heavens and commit the very best acts of love and kindness. The latter is the very best of human beings and that love and kindness will always outshine the darkness of hatred. Never Forget.