#2357 | Wednesday, September 11th 2002
It doesn't seem like a whole year since our country was attacked. It doesn't even feel like a couple months. But I remember exactly where I was. I had to leave for school at 6:30, so I was waking up at about 5:45, and to help wake me up, I turned on the news. All I saw was a sky of smoke and a building pertruding out of it, and I thought a factory was on fire... until I heard what the newscaster was saying. Then it was off to school. I got to class and rumors were spreading like crazy. Someone said that America was under attack like the movie "Independence Day," hitting all of our nation's monumental buildings. One girl said, "Oh my gosh I am so disgusted." I said, "I know this is such a tragedy," and she said, "No, no, I mean, can you believe how much pollution is in the air now?" The things people were saying were amazing to hear, some people were on the verge of breaking down into tears. All I know is that when I got home, the last thing on my mind was homework. I was glued to the T.V. all night, and I was for a couple days after that.


In Rememberance... "Yet through all the gloom I see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the end is worth all the means. And that posterity will triumph." -John Adams (1735–1826)

Lacy | 17 | California

#2339 | Wednesday, September 11th 2002
“…Air Force One…Pentagon…fire, bomb, we don’t know…the President was…” The voice of the newscaster forced itself out of my clock radio, intrusive and, above all, unwanted at the ungodly hour of 5:40am. I groaned, as I almost always do, when I heard the radio click on signifying the too early start to my day and too early end of my warm, cozy night…I am not a morning person and an almost daily ritual for me is to ask myself WHY did I think an early class was EVER a good idea? This morning constitution was jarred to a halt as a newscasters words began to penetrate and register in my sleep-fogged brain. I laid there, frozen as I tried to piece together what, exactly I was hearing. Beside me, my husband turned over…”Did you hear that too?” I asked. There was a pause…”There was a bomb someplace with the President?” he mumbled in a sleepy, confused voice. “I don’t know,” I said, and with that I leapt out of bed, feeling a burning urgency to get to a TV. I yanked open a dresser drawer, grabbed a pair of jeans and struggled into them as I stumbled down the hall and out to the family room. I yanked open the TV cabinet doors with one hand while pressing the power button on the remote control with the other. As the picture came to life I saw the towers come into focus, the audio quickly came up and I heard Katie Couric saying that they were waiting on word, but that in what appeared to be a tragic accident, an airplane had crashed into one of the World Trade Center Towers. Overlapping the end of that statement were comments about the fact that this type of accident hadn’t really ever happened before…
…I heard my husband open our bedroom door and start to ask “So, what…”
… and more comments from those on the TV, asking how did it happen now…
…I started to look over my shoulder to “shush” my husband and something on the TV screen caught my eye…
…I whipped my head back around, feeling as if I were moving through
jell-o…
…the remote dropped to the floor with a muffled thump…
…”Oh, my God…”
… and I watched the second plane plow into the other tower, a fireball hurtling out the other side. In the back of my mind a child-like thought floated through the absolute shock …”I kinda thought it would fly out the other side, wow…”
…It was just after 5:46am, Tuesday morning, September 11th, 2001.

Beth G. McClain ,nursing student, San Jose, CA



Beth | 25 | California

#2316 | Wednesday, September 11th 2002
On September 11, 2002, when the tragedy had happened, I was sleeping. When I woke up and found out what had happened, it was strange. It was strange because all that had happened while I was sleeping. Then when I woke up, I find out that a lot had just happened while I was sleeping.
A year ago on September 11, 2002, my mom woke me up. I woke up for school around 7:45am like I did everyday for school last year. I put on my uniform and I heard my mom tell my older sister to watch something that was happening in New York that was showing on the news. When I was finished changing and washing up, I went to the living room and watched the news. I was confused because there was so much noise and so many things happening in the background while the reporter was talking. It looked like New York City was chaotic. My mom told me that terrorists had attacked and they crashed two planes into the World Trade Center. My mom said it was a very terrible thing to do. I was still confused because I did not know what a terrorist was and why they would be attacking us. When I got to school, our homeroom teacher talked about what had happened and explained further details. I was not confused anymore, but I was worried because I have relatives and friends that live in New York and New Jersey. So I hoped that they were safe. My uncle works for the FBI in New York City, so I was concerned about him too. Our teacher prayed with the whole class. Throughout the whole day, every teacher in every class discussed the tragedy, why it happened, our thoughts and what America was to do. When I got home, my dad turned on the news and the video of the tragedy and the story was playing over and over again. I called my uncle, aunt, and cousins in New Jersey and left a message telling them that I wanted to know how they were doing. My uncle called me back and told me everyone was fine. When I was instant messaging, I talked to my friend in New Jersey and asked her how she was doing and made sure she and all of our friends in New Jersey were okay. Everyone I know who lives in the east coast was okay. I was glad, but there were still the thousands of people who lost their lives in the World Trade Center and their families.

Elizabeth | 15 | California

#2315 | Wednesday, September 11th 2002
On the day of September 11, 2001 I was at home. I woke up early in the morning to get ready for school. When I turned on the radio I heard the news about the airplanes hitting the towers but I didn’t pay much attention to it because I thought it wasn’t really too important. But when I turned the TV on I saw how serious it was. I went out to the kitchen and my parents were just sitting there watching the TV. Later I found out my dad was supposed to fly out the night before to go to work there over at the twin towers. But he cancelled his flight. I was glad that he decided not to go anymore. I was sort of freaked out about that but happy too. It just felt weird knowing that he could have been there and I started thinking about what it would be like if he was there. Today one year later I still think about what could have happened to him. So now I pray everyday for those people who lost their lives and for all those who lost loved ones for them to stay strong and believe in their faith. God Bless
Naevon | 14 | California

#2313 | Wednesday, September 11th 2002
I came o school on September 11th it was like any other day. My classmates and I were standing in line waiting to hear the morning announcements. Then my friend leaned over to my with tears in her eyes. She told me what had happened. Horrified and scared, I told her" I didn't even know, I was sleeping though people dying." I started too got teary-eyed, just because of that one thought. People were dying while I slept peacefully. We walked into our classroom and it was so quiet that you could have heard a pin drop. We just sat there, in our desks, to stunned to speak. Then we got the announcement over the loudspeaker that we were evacuating the school. Ten or twenty minuets later, parents showed up crying. My mom took me and my friend Janine home to my house because Janine’s mom was working at the hospital and she had to stay for a while. When we arrived at my house, I saw my dad sitting on the couch. It was the only time I have ever seen him with tears streaming down his checks. He was sent home from his work that day just as we were from school. Me, my mom, my dad, my sister and Janine, watched the TV. With horrer.We were glued to the set for hours. WE only got up to get tissue to dry our tears. I went to bed that night to worried, and too scared to sleep. I couldn't help but think...
Alexandra | 13 | California

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