14 years ago today, America faced its biggest loss. Covered
in debris, and soaked in blood and tears, thousands of New Yorkers fled for
their lives, while thousands more fled to save the lives of others. Despite
the calls for help, and the screams of fear, America fell silent. On this day,
all Americans were covered in the same debris, the debris of pain, anger and
the stain of tears that will never be wiped away. Today we are stronger, wiser
and braver than we have ever been, but the memories of that horrific September
day will live on forever.
On September
11th 2001, I was much too young to understand the severity of what
our great country was facing. Sitting in a second grade classroom mid morning,
teachers became flustered while trying to hold back the panic that was seeping
through their expressions. Little by little, my classmates were being called to
the main office to be taken home. About 30 minutes later, every child in school
was lined up in the hallway, waiting to be picked up by a parent. When my mother
finally came to pick me up, I was confused and filled with fear ; I asked my
mother what was going on, and she responded with silence.
Being
an 8 year old boy, I was naive to many of the evils that existed in this world.
When I went home, there was a cloud of smoke lingering in the air in the
distance, and when I turned the television on, the question I asked my mother earlier
was suddenly answered. Today, 14 years after the attacks on the twin towers, I can
still picture the news reports in my mind, and remember the tears in my sisters
eyes when my father returned safely from the city. Today, I can finally understand
my mother’s silence and the fear that everyone held in their eyes.
