story1249.xml
Title
story1249.xml
Source
born-digital
Media Type
story
Date Entered
2002-08-19
911DA Story: Story
September 11th, 2001, is a day that will never leave my memory. I remember first waking up at 3:00 AM. Since I couldn't get back to sleep, I read through Stephen King's "Insomnia" (a book that, ironically, also featured a fanatic plunging a plane into a crowded place to stress his beliefs). I headed off to school at around 7:30 AM.
I was in 2nd period Latin when they announced the horrible news over the speaker system. Before then, rumors about what had happened were circulating throughout the school; mind you, I hadn't heard any of them.
The announcement was brief and full of fear. The secretary in the office told the entire school that two planes had crashed into the World Trade Center (at first, I thought she was referring to the Boston World Trade Center, which is so dinky that it can barely be considered bomb-worthy). After the announcement, I remember turning to the person next to me and saying glibly- no joking- "I bet you that the person behind this has the initials OBL."
I truly didn't realise how bad it was until someone brought in a TV and showed us the footage. The two towers were burning up. People were jumping from the wreckage to avoid being burned to death. And then, the towers came crashing down. I then knew the extent of what had happened, but I didn't really know how sickening it was.
That sensation came during 5th period. They showed us more footage- including a video camera shot of the second plane careening right into the second tower. That was when I felt the bottom of my stomach drop out. I thought to myself, what kind of merciful God could allow this? Why was this happening?
I made my way down to the front office, and made a call to my mom, asking her to pick me up as soon as possible after school. She did, and we drove home. I tried to escape from what was going on outside, but I couldn't. Every radio station was broadcasting live coverage of what had happened, along with every television network. I barely remember making it through the rest of the day. Then, I finally went to sleep, the reports from my radio talking on in the darkness.
I was in 2nd period Latin when they announced the horrible news over the speaker system. Before then, rumors about what had happened were circulating throughout the school; mind you, I hadn't heard any of them.
The announcement was brief and full of fear. The secretary in the office told the entire school that two planes had crashed into the World Trade Center (at first, I thought she was referring to the Boston World Trade Center, which is so dinky that it can barely be considered bomb-worthy). After the announcement, I remember turning to the person next to me and saying glibly- no joking- "I bet you that the person behind this has the initials OBL."
I truly didn't realise how bad it was until someone brought in a TV and showed us the footage. The two towers were burning up. People were jumping from the wreckage to avoid being burned to death. And then, the towers came crashing down. I then knew the extent of what had happened, but I didn't really know how sickening it was.
That sensation came during 5th period. They showed us more footage- including a video camera shot of the second plane careening right into the second tower. That was when I felt the bottom of my stomach drop out. I thought to myself, what kind of merciful God could allow this? Why was this happening?
I made my way down to the front office, and made a call to my mom, asking her to pick me up as soon as possible after school. She did, and we drove home. I tried to escape from what was going on outside, but I couldn't. Every radio station was broadcasting live coverage of what had happened, along with every television network. I barely remember making it through the rest of the day. Then, I finally went to sleep, the reports from my radio talking on in the darkness.
Collection
Citation
“story1249.xml,” September 11 Digital Archive, accessed December 22, 2025, https://911digitalarchive.org/items/show/8491.