lc_story217.xml

lc_story217.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2004-01-07

On September 11, 2001 I was in my math class, third period I believe, with Mr. Mueller. We were sitting in our seats in class about to check our homework, talking and gossiping with one another until the principal came onto the announcements and told the school the news he had heard and been watching. At that point Mr. Mueller turned on the television and we were viewing the twin towers when the second tower was hit by the plane. The class just sat there, no noise, no nothing. I remember being so confused because at that point in time I had no idea what was happening or where this was or even what the twin towers were. I had never been to New York or heard of the pentagon. I didn't really know what was going on, I was just silent and scared. People in my class began saying that we were going to war or that countries were bombing us or they were going to call our parents away to go off to war. The rest of the day in all of our classes we just sat there and watched the television and talked about what exactly we were witnessing. It was horrible. Some parents took their children out of school, my mother came and picked up my step-brother and I from fifth period, right after lunch. She was worried and wanted us to be home because she herself didn't know what exactly was going on. As I got home I just remember staring at the television and later talking to my dad on he phone and crying because what happened was so shocking and horrible I couldn't believe it. I was so afriad that my dad would be drafted into an army and sent away, even though my dad has never been in the military or even associated with anything of the sort. I was so naive and confused on what had all happened.

My strongest memory of that day was calling and talking to my dad on the phone. I was so upset because I thought that he would have to leave me to go off and fight for the country. I didn't even have the slighest idea of what had even happened that day, nor what the twin towers or the pentagon even were.

The September 11 events haven't actually affected my life in a physical way. I've only ridden in an airplane once in my life, and that was in third grade. It has, however, affected my emotions. I never had believed before that the U.S. would ever be attacked in any way. I believed that we were the strongest country in the world, no one would ever try to harm us in any way. I was so naive then and I've learned so much more than I knew then. It seemed that in history and any other class, instead of regular class, we just discussed the events that had happened. The school and classes just seemed to be kind of phased, everyone was upset. Nothing was the same.