11 Years Later

Writing on a Georgia blog to primarily a Georgia audience, I am probably one of the few that was near the site of the attacks on 9/11.  My school, Eastern Middle School, was less than a mile from the DC border, and about 10 from The Pentagon.  My grandfather lived in Manhattan, mere blocks from the site of the World Trade Center.  The experience I had, along with those of my friends, family, and peers, was very different.

When we all heard the news, our first questions were “Did we know anyone,” and for too many people, the answer was yes.

My eighth grade class was less than a month from our trip to New York City.  Though I heard of something amiss in third period science, it was not until Ms. Seed’s English class that we truly knew what was happening.  In her class, we were studying literature of and by New York City.  On September 11, 2001, we were reading the lyrics to the song Imagine by John Lennon.  At that moment, Emily May walked into the room, crying, and Ms. Seed (breaking all protocol) told us what had happened.

Minutes later, my dad picked me up from school, early, and brought me home to be with my family.

We never will– or should– forget the events of September 11, 2001.  I know I won’t.