September 11th Rememberd
On the morning of September 11th, 2001, 19 international terrorists affiliated with Al Qaeda conducted a string of attacks that took the lives of over 3000 American citizens. Today, exactly eleven years later, people all over the world come together to mourn. In New York City, thousands descended upon the 9/11 Memorial to pay their respects. In Washington DC, President Obama and the First Lady shared a moment of silence with thousands more as wreaths were laid to honor the victims.
For this reason, I decided to avoid doing any sci-fi articles today and thought I’d just simply do a post honoring those who died and paying tribute to those who lost someone close to them. I can’t imagine what that’s like, having never lost a person to such tragic circumstances. But I think I speak for everyone when I saw it was an awful day.
That’s why I’m also not going to share any opinions on the event, the aftermath, or anything that’s happened since. Far too many people have done that already and today is not a day for divisiveness or politics. I will share where I was when it happened though, as I remember that quite clearly. For me, the news came in the relatively early hours of the morning, as I was sleeping in after a long night of pounding the pavement for campus security. I was a student, still living at home (since I lived only fifteen minutes from the university) and was waken up by my mother who told me the news. I rushed to the TV set and thought the US was under attack, like most people I’m guessing…
I was extremely fortunate in that I wasn’t one of those who were there to see it close up, not to mention the countless other people in New York or Manhattan who were effected by the fear and the chaos. Here’s hoping nothing of the sort ever happens again, and that we can all look forward to a time when people can resolve their differences without the need for terrorism, violent political statements, or war. Peace!
Photo: The 9/11 Reflecting Absence Memorial
National September 11 Memorial Museum Site
