story6578.xml

story6578.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-12

On September 11, 2001, I was sitting in my world cultures honors class,
dreading the fact that I was stuck there for another 80 minutes of boredom. I
had done my homework as usual, and we were reviewing all the important
information we would need to know for the next day's assignment. The class
continued to be a tedious one, like any other day at Northwestern Lehigh High
School, and I assumed it would be this way the rest of the year. Later in the
period, we had gotten word from another teacher to turn on the television
sets, only to stare in horror at the vivid pictures consuming the small
screens. A plane had struck the World Trade Center, and all I could think was
New York would never be the same. My mind wandered into thinking if I knew
anyone that would be in that area, on that given day. I could think of no one.
During this time, I don't think there was anyone in the whole entire class who
spoke a single word except for the teacher, who seemed so awestruck by the
mystery of the attack. After moving to second period, I sat down in
trigonometry, only to watch the television for the rest of the period. Then,
after lunch, I marched into English Honors class to again fill my mind with
plaguing questions about the attack from watching the television. My English
teacher, a New York native, was appalled and shocked by the attack. Her son,
who was in New York, was all she could think about. No one said anything the
whole class, and when we finally were preparing to leave the class, President
George Bush was getting ready to make a speech about the atrocity. The bell
rang, and no one moved from his or her seats. We were all enthralled with the
speech that our terrified President was making. About 10 minutes later, we all
finally budged from our chairs and continued on with the day.
I don't think I have ever been so relieved to be at my home. I felt so much
more comfortable knowing I was with my family, and we would all be together if
something had happened later. I did have to work that night, but since being
at Wal-Mart with my friends is like my second family, I didn't mind being
there with the people I knew. Every customer that came through my line was
concerned about the attacks. The people I talked to each shared a different
opinion about who they thought would be behind such a catastrophe. Each
person, however, had the same look of disbelief on his or her face.
September 11, 2001 will never be the same in my mind, nor will it be for the
rest of America. The terrorism that we faced only will make us stronger, and
more close to one another. When I grow older, and I look back on today, I will
think of how just one day changed the patriotism that America will hold dearly
in it's heart, for years to come.