Thoughts for Thursday: 9-11-01

 Its hard to believe that today marks the 7th anniversary of the horrific 9-11-01 terrorist attacks on our country.

Like many of you, I will never forget that morning.  I had just started my job as a Gifted/Talented teacher at Dayton's Bluff when I received the following e-mail from one of my best friends: "A plane just crashed into the World Trade Center.  They think its terrorists!"  I was like WTF??!!  Shortly after I received the e-mail, I was working ina  2nd grade classroom when our Principal knocked on the door and pulled the other teacher and I out into the classroom to tell us what had happened.  We were asked to not say a word to the kids and continue on with our day as though nothing had happened.  That was very difficult to do, as you can imagine.  I was able to watch news coverage about an hour after I first received the e-mail, and I was absolutely shocked.  It was awful to think that there had been 4 planes hijacked that day, and how it could get much, much worse.

Later that night when I got home, I was glued to the TV....watching in horror as the Twin Towers came down and all the rescue workers and other people who were trapped in the buildings as they fell.  It all seemed so surreal.  So, so sad.  At that time they thought there may have been 50,000 people in the building, and so many people were missing.  Who could imagine that something so devastating would happen in our homeland???

September 11th is a day I don't think any of us will forget.

Do you remember where you were and what you were doing when you first heard the news?  Is it something you still think about?

I would like to recognize others who have posts about 9-11-01 today:

Samara

Kasey

Heather

Dana Leigh

Jes

Autumn

Noel

Jennifer

Elizabeth

Sasha

Jessica

Michelle

Denise

Comments

[Julie]

I will never forget September 11, 2001, where I was, and the feelings and emotions I was feeling. It has been 7 years since that tragic day and yet when I see an image from 9/11, it brings back the same sadness I felt that day. Tears fill my eyes, goose bumps fill my body as the memories come flooding back. I was not there, yet I watched with horror, as did millions of us, feeling completely helpless watching so many people lose their lives and suffer through that day not knowing if their loved ones were alive or not. To have this type of attack brought to American soil was maddening to me. This happens all over the world, yet it doesn't hit home until it happens at home. I believe in our fight on terrorism! It needs to be fought so it doesn't prevail. I just fear that the war on terrorism is going to be a war this world has to find forever.

[Julie]

Boy, I can't type... That last sentence should read as...
I just fear that the war on terrorism is going to be a war this world has to fight forever.

[Denise]

Great minds think alike. My post is almost identical to yours.

[Ang]

Oh Kristi, I'm so glad you blogged about this. Its too bad that, as often as we may think about it, we only stop to talk about it on the anniversary.
I remember, like everyone, where I was that morning and how my heart dropped to my stomach when I heard what happened. I stayed home from work that day (I did home health care then) and watched the news all day... I've never cried so hard in my life.
I had friends in the Military and became concerned for their futures. Such a horrible event...
I've been to Ground Zero twice since 2001 and the air is so still there. People always around and remembering.
We are re-building and, as a nation, we will grow stronger because of this.

[adrienne]

I will never forget. I was pregnant with Aj and my mom called me wanting to know if I had heard from my brother. He was in the Navy in California, and on his way to NY for training. His flight was delayed.

[Dana Leigh]

Of course I remember exactly where I was. It was a Tuesday and I was at work at a bank and someone from another department came and told us the news. It was definitely hard to be at work that day and we would sneak into the boardroom in between customers as often as possible to watch CNN's coverage as the events unfolded. I had class that night and it was cancelled so I sat in front of the TV with homework on my lap that I could not concentrate on bawling my eyes out watching in horror what had happened earlier in the day. I lived alone in an apartment at that time and I remember feeling very alone that day.

[autumn]

I'd never felt anything like that before or since. But I'll never forget it. Everyone who lost someone is in my thoughts today.

[jessica]

good post.

i remember it like it happened twenty seconds ago. i was working in my home office, i was in my pjs and my husband called to tell me to turn on the tv. it was surreal after that. i barely moved from my chair, i was frozen there. watching the horror and realizing with the rest of the country what actually was happening.

i had the privilege to visit the site right when they opened it to the public, and it was also surreal. those images are forever etched in my mind.

like your other commenter said, it's sad that we don't recognize it more than on its anniversary.

[Michelle]

Well, you read my blog. I don't think about it much these days sadly enough. I didn't even realize it was today until my sister brought it up yesterday. It's a depressing day nonetheless!

[Robyn]

I remember it vividly. I happened to be off that day and had been watching GMA and watched from the beginning. I was in shock as I saw the 2nd plane hit.

[Samara]

Kristi, I cannot imagine how hard it must have been for you to try and go about your day as normal after hearing and seeing what happened. Oh my god! I just can't imagine! You are tough chick!! I'm curious to know how it was in the days following though. Surely your kids when home and saw those horrible images on the news or heard about it from their parents. Did they have a million questions? Were they scared and sad? Or were they relatively protected from it? Also, I think it's great that you put links to all the 9/11 related posts. I'm out of time for today, but I'm going to go back and check those out sometime soon. I'm eager to read what others shared. Take care!