story10131.xml
Title
story10131.xml
Source
born-digital
Media Type
story
Date Entered
2003-09-21
911DA Story: Story
My grandfather, A.C. Scott, was a WWII Vetran. He was in the US Navy stationed in Alaska on the USS Black Hawk. We were very close, both sharing a passion for history. I grew up in his house and spent pretty much the first 16 years of my life under his roof. I can only recall my grandfather crying twice; when he would watch Pearl Harbor Memorials on television and when my grandmother died in 1993.
On September 11, 2001, I was a senior at Syracuse University en route to class when the first tower was struck. By the time the world realized the reality of these events, I had this nagging feeling to go to my grandfather and be with him. He was in a nursing home at the time. But I was convinced to stay put where I was as a precaution, no one could imagine the possibilities of what might happen next.
As a result of what my grandfather viewed live on television that fateful Tuesday he became severely depressed. On September 23, 2001 he died of pneumonia. In my eyes my grandfather too was a casualty of 9/11.
We are only beginning to comprehend individually and collectively the enormity of 9/11. Younger generations for the first time have learned that maybe there is something worthy of the ultimate sacrifice. We are all walking wounded. But when I think of older Americans from the Greatest Generation, it is hard for me to grasp what they have witnessed to throughout their lives. I am sure my grandfather relived Pearl Harbor on 9/11, in more ways than we can imagine. Witnessing first hand the two bloodiest attacks on American soil is more than one could possibly bear in a lifetime.
On September 11, 2001, I was a senior at Syracuse University en route to class when the first tower was struck. By the time the world realized the reality of these events, I had this nagging feeling to go to my grandfather and be with him. He was in a nursing home at the time. But I was convinced to stay put where I was as a precaution, no one could imagine the possibilities of what might happen next.
As a result of what my grandfather viewed live on television that fateful Tuesday he became severely depressed. On September 23, 2001 he died of pneumonia. In my eyes my grandfather too was a casualty of 9/11.
We are only beginning to comprehend individually and collectively the enormity of 9/11. Younger generations for the first time have learned that maybe there is something worthy of the ultimate sacrifice. We are all walking wounded. But when I think of older Americans from the Greatest Generation, it is hard for me to grasp what they have witnessed to throughout their lives. I am sure my grandfather relived Pearl Harbor on 9/11, in more ways than we can imagine. Witnessing first hand the two bloodiest attacks on American soil is more than one could possibly bear in a lifetime.
Collection
Citation
“story10131.xml,” September 11 Digital Archive, accessed December 28, 2024, https://911digitalarchive.org/items/show/15820.