Where Were You?

Over the course of my life, there have been three days about which I can easily recall most minute-by-minute details.  One is June 21, 1994, one is December 11, 2008, and the other is September 11, 2001.  I was in my junior year of college, living at the Alpha Gam house in the middle room on second new.  I was getting ready for class, up a little earlier than I normally would have been on a Tuesday because my Young Adult Lit class was meeting at the Ames Public Library instead of on campus.  As usual, I flipped on The Today Show for background noise and entertainment.  At one point, as I walked from the bathroom into my room, I saw Katie Couric talking about an accident in NYC after the first plane had hit.  As I stood and watched, the second plane hit, and there was an instant shift in the perceived cause.  It became clear very quickly that this was no accident.

I had to leave to go to class, and when I got there, a few others had also seen or heard some coverage.  My professor, Donna Niday, hadn't heard anything about it yet, and we continued with class as normal.  By the time I returned home from class, many girls had gathered to watch coverage.  The situation seemed to just be getting worse and worse.  I remember feeling scared and incredibly helpless.  I called my mom and asked her through tears what was happening to our country.  I couldn't begin to wrap my mind around such a selfish, senseless act and its horrifying impact.  I don't think any of us could.

This year, as I reflect on 9/11 - as I know we all do - I'm finding myself really thinking about the families of the victims.  I remember the 10th anniversary of my dad's passing, and I remember feeling all day long that something significant should happen on that day.  Nothing did, but I spent that day anticipating ... I'm not sure what, but something.  So now as the families of the 9/11 victims find themselves still moving forward ten years later, I wonder what they are thinking and feeling.  Every effort that has been made to fight those responsible and to rebuild what was lost, while noble, doesn't bring someone back.  Politics and personal beliefs aside, I think we can all agree to take some time to think not only about the victims, but those who were left to live without them.  

I think about how my life has changed as a result of 9/11, and I didn't know anybody killed in the attacks.  On top of losing freedoms and a feeling of safety, consider the magnitude of having lost a loved one that day.  Today, my thoughts are with the husbands, wives, sons, daughters, mothers, and fathers who are waking up to another day - another year - without a person they didn't deserve to lose.