I think it takes anyone a while to wrap their heads around an idea that they didn't create or an event that they weren't there to witness or be a part of. But only now, nine years after the towers were struck down, do I think I'm finally beginning to understand what occurred on that September morning. Maybe it's because my teachers have seemed to avoid it in class, and it hasn't been drilled into my head like the Holocaust or the Vietnam War, or even a small murder like the one of Emmet Till. All I know is that I've always had a hard time grasping what happened on 9/11.
So, today I watched a bit of the memorial on T.V. and that I think, helped me finally realize what tragic things happened and how horrible they really were. I turned on the memorial just as Mayor Bloomberg made his speech, and the moment of silence at 8:46 occurred. During that moment, my mind wasn't silent. I made myself picture a plane striking a building. A building that seemed indestructible and intimidating from my perspective as a mere human. A building holding hundreds of people, people who had daughters, sons, wives, husbands, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, and friends to get home to. People who came to work knowing it just as another day of work, and nothing else.
That hit me.
After a few more words from the Mayor and other significant people, they began to list the names of those who died at the World Trade Center.
That hit me more than anything.
I watched them recite the names slowly, one at a time, stopping to speak about their loved ones, and after what felt like an eternity, I realized: They're only in the A's. At that point, I started bawling and headed up in my room to change my clothes and get ready for the day because I knew my Dad would want me to help him out with my sister soon. After a hour and a half, I got back downstairs. They were just starting to recite the names of those who died that last names started with a D. I don't know how long it took them to say all the names, I couldn't watch for that long because I had a busy day ahead of me. But I watched most of it from the As to the Hs. There was a girl who died, she was two. I looked at my little sister when her name came across the screen, she was playing with her toys, sitting on the floor oblivious to anything real. I imagined her with only one more year left to live, and I never want to have to imagine that again.
I didn't loose anyone on 9/11. But my heart goes out to those who did. I was too young at the time to have memories of it now or to even have known what was going on at the time. But I'm glad I'm finally realizing the horror of what happened that day, and how many lives it touched.
I found this photo online when I ran a Google image search. Someone posted them on their blog, and the reviews were very mixed. I thought I'd put this photo instead of some of the more graphic ones I found, because I thought this one was interesting and thought provoking. I think they're just stupid. What's next? A Hiroshima doll? But... some people liked them! Beats me.
This week my sister and I caught the tail end of a special on the History channel about 9/11 conspiracy theories. I found it really interesting while I don't believe in any of it! But it did open my eyes do a new way of thinking... I guess. :p
Song stuck in my head today: "Working on a Dream" by Bruce Springsteen
Keep on keepin' on,
Madison
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