story11339.xml

story11339.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2005-03-15

I was getting my two children ready for school, when I turned on the television and CNN was on. The first plane had just struck the Word Trade Centre. I turned to my son who was watching with me and exclaimed, "oh that's terrible, a plane accidentally hit the world trade centre". As my 14 year old son and I watched, the second plane struck. It is difficult to express the sheer "horror and terror" that I felt as I realized what must be happening. To my surprise, my son replied, "it must be Osama". I had never even heard the name before. As the events of that day escalated, I continued to prepare my children for school. I drove the children to their school, as I did every morning, questioning all the while, whether I was doing the right thing by sending them to school on such a "life altering" day. As it turned out most of the students did attend classes that day, although they spend most of the day watching the television in their classrooms. Thankfully, the teachers and fellow students provided a safe and calm environment for my children that day. On my way back home the skies over Winnipeg were filled with jet airplanes circleing the city at extremely low altitudes, waiting for their turn to land. I was terrified. When I arrived at home, I cried, called my family members, some of whom live in the United States. My heart breaks for the people of New York and Washington; especially those who lost loved ones in the attacks. It is an event that has effected us all.

Susan K
Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada