Manion Amor: Ten Years

Ten years ago today I was sitting in my 7th grade science class when another teacher rushed in and turned on the TV. I didn't understand what was happening at all--until school was canceled and we were all shuffled onto our buses to go home. I then realized something really bad had happened. And when I got home, my family was sitting in our living room together watching the news. Even though I still didn't know exactly what had happened, I started to cry because I could feel that this was a day that would change all our lives.

I spent the rest of that day watching news crews report on the devastating events that had taken place that morning. I listened as blame was placed on foreign names I didn't understand. I remember hearing "terrorist" over and over and thinking I knew what that meant, but it still didn't really explain to me why this had happened. And then it hit me: are all the men and women who were in those buildings okay? I knew the answer, but I didn't want it to be true. Even as a young 7th grader, I knew the words "Twin Towers in NYC." I had heard my friends and classmates tell me "my dad works in the twin towers in NYC" or "my mom works in the Twin Towers in NYC." I was confused, but I could put it all together--were all those dads and moms okay? People that I knew. People that I cared about. Now so many of my friends and classmates would live the rest of their lives without one of their parents, all because of "terrorists" and "Osama bin Laden," whatever that meant. All I knew was this was so unfair to all those people, and we were so lucky to still be sitting together as a family around the TV.

That day really has changed all of our lives. I personally knew people effected from the events, but even if you didn't, you've experienced the differences in our nation since then. We will always remember. We will never forget.