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Seven Years Later: Remembering 9/11
It's somewhat hard to believe that it's been seven years since the tragedies of September 11, 2001 shocked the nation and the world at large. For many the day is one that will be a sharp memory, one where we remember exactly where we were, what we were doing and how we heard and absorbed the news about the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as flight 93 that went down in Pennsylvania. iVillagers share their reflection on this anniversary, how the events have changed the world and how they're commemorating the day:
"We went to see the wound in the side of the Pentagon, and the air smelled like hickory, but that was just the fire smoke still lingering in the autumnal air. I get a head rush just re-living it as I write, and there are so many moments, and details that I can't articulate. In a world full of people, I had never felt so alone as that day." -- darwish2
"I was at home in my living room just puttering around the house. I rarely have the TV on but for some reason I had turned on the news station because it was really quiet that day. I watched that horrifying event repeatedly crying my eyes out. It stands vividly in my memory and always will."
"I'll never forget the initial feeling of denial about the seriousness of what happened to America on Sept 11. All day my co-workers and I sat glued in sadness and horror to the radio and news broadcasts on the internet while a 'normal day at work' was not happening..." -- cl-closetvixen
"I still can't look at images or hear stories about that day without feeling the lump in my throat. I know that many of your husbands or yourselves have been deployed as a result. Does anyone want to share what they were doing when they heard the news? I can remember exactly where I was and what was happening. I was in my car on the way to the banquet hall to drop off my place cards for our wedding on the 14th. I was in shock. When I got to the hall I sat a table with the owner and just watched the news in awe. I remember how eerily odd it was to have silent skies after that- save for a few fighter jets here and there. I live near an international airport and an Air Force base. It was so strange to celebrate our wedding on Friday knowing that there were still rescue missions happening a mere 2 hours away in Manhattan." -- darias3rd
"My heart goes out to all the family members and friends of the victims as they no doubt will relive those horrifying moments when they realized their loved ones had been in the attacks. God Bless them." -- karla1842
"I will never forget where and what I was doing...I don't like watching the anniversary coverage of it year after year, so, I try and not watch TV on that day and just get out and spend the time with my daughter." -- messpark3
What are your thoughts on this 7th anniversary of the September 11 attacks? Are you doing anything to commemorate the day? How did these events change your view of the world or affect your life? Share your reflections and stories with us here.
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My fear is, as I have posted on our bands MySpace blog and eluded to in a special "commemorative' song, "Remembrance Day", that we have NOT remembered. The beauty of remembering - a bi-product of memory, the memory that teaches us that if the stove we just set our hand on is on perhaps touching it again is not the wisest option, is that we improve and evolve from it. We...adapt and ensure that bad memories are commemorated with a sense of optimism - and relief that we have remembered, and learned.
Instead I find the world, and myself included, blissfully ignorant for 364 days of the year until such time as when the clock strikes a certain hour and it all comes flooding back. Oh yeah....that DID happen. I had almost....?
Have another latte. Buy another iPod. Remember the victims and honor them by learning from our memories. We cannot afford to rest our hands on that stove ever again.
I remember that awful morning.It was just a regular begining of the day as usual. My husband was getting our daughter ready for school. I had already gotten her hair done, fed her breakfast, checked to make sure all her homework was done. They were now both getting dressed to walk out the door to school. As usual we always watch the news and right before our eyes We saw what was the most horific scene I have ever seen on tv. I could not believe what I was seeing. I know many lives were lost that day and I pray that something like this never happens again in our country.
May God bless the families of all those who lost their lives that day. May they never be forgotten.
I was a college student on the West coast in 2001. I had just come downstairs to get my breakfast when I flipped on the news to learn that the 1st plane had hit. I remember the media saying a "horrible accident." When I came back to the living room with my cereal, I watched the 2nd plane hit on live TV and knew instantly that it wasn't an accident. It was a somber day-- but I don't think at that time I really understood the weight of the whole situation.
I was coming out of an early class at college. I got in my car and turned on the radio as usual. The station was talking about planes hitting the towers and the Pentagon and I thought it was a joke at first and then I realized it was real. I remember driving home scared and listening to the radio. When I got home, I immediately turned on the news and watched as the towers fell. It is the most scared I've ever been. We didn't think it could ever happen in our country. I cried everytime they showed pictures but yet I couldn't turn it off because I knew I was watching history unfold. Every generation has a significant event that impacts the world and this was ours. I pray for the families and friends that lost someone on 9/11 and hope that someday they find peace.
It started out as such an ordinary day with my usual cup of coffee and the Today show. I saw the plane hit the first tower as the Manhattan skyline was the backdrop for the show hosts. I stared in amazement, wondering what idiot flying that plane could not see the tower. It was only moments later that the second plane hit, and it became clear to everyone that we were being attacked. Not since I was a child and participating in air raid drills in grade school had I even thought about the possibility. I spent the entire day watching the events unfold, in horror, right before my eyes. I pray that the families of the ones who were lost in Manhattan, Pennsylvania and Washington find peace.
On September 11, 2001...I was in 11th grade. My chemistry class was over and my friend Jon and I were walking to Trig. On our way we heard several teachers talking on their cell phones saying planes had hit the WTC. Our Trig teacher turned on the television and we watched in horror. When school got out my boyfriend and I went back to my house and sat on the couch with my mom and just cried and were horrified that something like this could happen in our country.
Now as an adult and a kindergarten teacher, it is so hard to fathom something like this. Today as I tried to explain to my students (who were not even born) the events of that day I had a difficult time.
I CAN REMEMBER LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY,I WAS GETTING READY FOR WORK AT THE HOSPITAL,AND IT WAS LIKE SOMETHING TOLD ME TO PUT THE TELEVISION ON,AND THERE IT WAS THE TWO TOWERS WERE BURNING,SO I CALLED MY MOM AND SAID(DO YOU KNOW THAT THE TOWERS ARE ON FIRE)?THATS ALL I COULD THINK ABOUT ALL DAY.WAS THAT PLAINS HIT THE TOWERS.SO MANY PEOPLE DIED THAT DAY.AND THEIR POOR FAMILIES WONDERING IF THEY WERE ALIVE OR DEAD.I FEEL BAD ABOUT ALL THEIR FAMILIES AND FRIENDS,LOST ALL OF THEIR LOVED ONES.
"I Still Have Nightmares About That Month...And The Worst Part Is....I Ask God Everyday....Why September 2001.....Didn't Stop....Before The Last Day Of August 2001...So September 2001....Would Be.....Just Like August 2001....And Then....When September 2002 Arrived.....I Wouldn't Have To Cry Starting On The First Day Of September.....Every Year Which Lasted Until.... The Next September!!!! "