nmah6488.xml

nmah6488.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2004-04-04

September the 11th was a gorgeous late summer morning. I was in college at the time. Life was good and this day promised to be no different than the last. My thoughts were focused on getting to class on time that morning.

I don't remember exactly where I was when I first heard that something had happened at the World Trade Center. I think overheard other students talking about it, and I went to find a TV. Something about a small plane crashing into the building.

When I found a TV there was a crowd of people huddled around it, an unlikely group of strangers brought together by the horror unfolding on television. By the time I found out what was going on the first tower had already collapsed. They played it over and over on television. I watched people throwing themselves from a skyscraper because it was better than being burned alive. Can you imagine having to make that choice.

Complete and utter shock is the only way to describe it. I have never experienced such emotions as I did that day, and I hope I never have to again. People were just coming into campus and all normal life just stopped. I walked outside the building I had been watching TV in and there were television and radio broadcasts outside. All we could do was watch.

People were crying. I don't know if I cried or not. I felt completely detached from reality at that point. My girlfriend at the time thought they were showing a movie on TV. She didn't realize until minutes later that she had just witnessed the first tower go down in flames.

Everything else that day seems blurred together now. I remember there was a candlelight vigil that night. We prayed for those that had perished in the attacks. We didn't know if there would be more. There were reports that a plane was headed for the white house. That someone had blown a bomb up on the steps of the Capitol building. Was this just confined to New York City or was it going to happen everywhere? No one could know.

Then I watched the second tower collapse and disintegrate into the streets of New York City, carrying with it the lives, hopes, and dreams of some three thousand Americans. How could two buildings like that just fall down? It seemed impossible. But it was happening on live international television.

They showed throngs of Arabs cheering in the streets in some faroff land. What the hell is wrong with these people? Weeks later we would learn the media skewed the facts that day, showing file footage to incite the hatred of Americans. And incite it did. Anyone who looked like an Arab was branded a potential terrorist.

But all that is another story, and I am digressing. I watched TV and listened to the radio for hours that day. I do not remember how it ended. I passed out at some point. I do remember waking up the next day and wondering if it was real. It was. What the hell was I supposed to do?

I wanted to go to New York City and help. I didn't know what I would do, or what difference I could possibly make. I wish I had said fuck it and gone. But like everyone else, all I coulkd really do was watch the television, and feel completely powerless.


So I witnessed history on television. My favorite music album is "The Rising" by Bruce Springsteen, an absolutely amazing memorial to the tragedy that captures the emotions of the moment perfectly. It still sends chills down my spine when I listen to those songs, and it probably always will.

I hope this story contributes something to this archive. It is not an amazing story from my point of view, as I watched the events unfold on live television hundreds of miles away. The real stories to read are from the survivors, the witnesses, and the untold stories of those who gave their lives for the cause of freedom.


I love America, and you should too. No matter the things that are wrong with this nation, its core value is freedom for all. That there are people out there who would try to take this away from us, is now readily apparent. We must hold on tight to what is ours. I know I will.


Keith Harper
www.keithharper.us

Everyon's life changed. Our faulty international politics became painfully aware. We learned that many people around the world do not like us, they see us as an ever-expanding empire of influence.

We became more vigilent. Paranoid. Afraid. But life goes on, and so will we. That terrible day seems a distant memory now, but we will never forget and continue to bring freedom to all the people of this world. A leader is never going to satisfy everyone. The United States is arguably the greatest nation ever to inhabit this earth, and we cannot satisfy everyone. We make decisions, and stick to them. That is good enough for me.

We should remember that freedom and even life itself is precious. To savor every moment of it, for we cannot know when it will end. That it was a day of unbearable loss and sacrifice. That those who perished trying to get people out of the towers are true heroes. We should never forget that day. It is a lesson to our nation and democracy everywhere that freedom is not easily won. We must defend it.

We should also remember that our soldiers sent to the front lines to combat the terrorists in Afghanista, Iraq, and wherever else are paying the ultimate sacrifice to protect the freedom of our people and bring freedom to other people around the world.

There is always one in my apartment. The American flag is a symbol of the sacrifice, courage, and dedication of our people to promoting and defending freedom. It is symbolic of loss and happiness at the same time. Every American should be proud of the flag that represents our great nation.