nmah3021.xml

nmah3021.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

Actually, as I witnessed what happened, I wasnt aware that history was being made. In fact, I didnt pay much attention. I woke up that morning, and turned on the television while I was eating breakfast. The coverage was on a lot of the channels, and at that time, only the first plane had struck the towers. The news reports then said that the plane was of the one-engine propeller variety, and when I saw the live video of the tower, it seemed fine. They also mentioned terrorist attacks a few times, but the general consensus then seemed to be that it was just an unfortunate accident. Surely there would have been loss of life, and I was sorry for that, but when I stepped out of the door it didnt weigh to heavily on my mind. I rode the public bus to school, and so I didnt even hear that a second plane had hit until I arrived on campus. It was early, and there were only a few kids there, but all of them had heard or seen something. I talked with a few, and there were many conflicting stories, but all agreed that a second plane had struck while I was en route to school. We spent the hour or so before school wandering around looking for a radio or television to keep us updated, but found none.
I had a test first period, but I finished early and asked my teacher if I could use the classroom Internet connection to find out what had happened. At that time, both towers were still standing, and I realized that the situation had become much more serious than I had originally thought. By now, they had determined that the planes were large passenger aircraft from various east coast airports. It was then that it really began to dawn on me how many people had been killed. Even at that point, it was shaping into one of the worst disasters we had ever experienced. As I went through various classes, the trade towers were the main topic of conversation. I remember that my chemistry class had a television in one of the rooms, and the majority of the faculty and students in the science building were watching coverage of what had happened. One faculty member just stood in front of the television shaking his head and muttering "look at that shit" over and over again. He summed up the general mood of everyone, one of complete and total disbelief. Terrorists? They were something out of the movies, or something you read about happening on the other side of the world. Not here, its not possible. It was then that the reports of the other planes hitting the Pentagon and crashing into a field began to filter in. I cant remember when it was that the towers collapsed, but I do remember watching the collapse of the World Trade Center No. 7 building. Those images are ones that I think stick in my mind the most and I know Ill have them with me for a while.

I think that it is a testament to the strength of the America people that my life hasn't changed. That's not to say that I personally have been unaffected by this tragedy. That would simply not be true. Emotionally, I think it has matured me a great deal, along with the rest of the country. However, there are no men in suits asking to see my identification on the streets, there aren't government checkpoints on the roads, and none of our other freedoms have been restricted. The only change outside of ourselves is the fact that there is now an American flag in the window of every car and business. As far as internal changes go, I think the national psyche has been forever altered. Patriotism is a theme that is saturating every facet of our lives now, from the television we watch to the magazines we read to any aspect of our culture. Our country's resolve has been strengthened beyond measure, and we have a sense of common experience that brings us together; a trauma that bridges race, religion, and status to affect us all.