lc_story230.xml

lc_story230.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2004-01-09

At the time I was lving about 40 miles NW of Los Angeles. I was in graduate school in Malibu and had gotten up early to finish a biographical sscetch of Gandhi. It was around half after 6 in the morning when the phone rang. It was my mother. SHe said that my dad had just heard on the radio that 2 planes has "kamikazied" into the world trade center buildings. My wife and I had gotten ris of our cable acces and so I ran into the bedroom where she was still asleep and we turned on the radio. We sat and listened to the radio as they described the horrible scene on the other side of the nation. I remember hearing them say that there had been a bomb at the State department as well. Horrifed, I left for school and drove through the canyon, on what really was a gloomy day. I got to school and was able for the first time to see it on TV. The sheer scale of the damage was obviously impossible to grasp from a television, but I couuld not look away.

Having lunch with my wife and talk ing to her about how this was going to change our lives.

I believe that while it certainly is an incredible tragedy, it has made us stronger. We are aware of enemies that we had ignored for years and we are stronger because of that knowledge.

We also realize what a special nation we have.