Seven Years--Always Remember

Just as your parents and I can remember where they were when they heard of Kennedys' assasination. . . . Just as your grandparents can remember the Pearl Harbor attack. . . . Now you have a day burned just as deeply into your memory.

You tenth graders were nervous third graders. You seniors fifth graders. It was a beautiful day around here, much like today, September 11, 2008. Clear sky. Nice breeze. Then . . . .

The world changed that day, at least our worlds changed. We were forced to open our eyes to a region of the world where, sure, there seemed to be fighting all of the time, but at least we weren't a part of it. Turns out that someone thought we WERE a part of it, so much so that they attacked us, and our peaceful, safe, way of life, and changed the way we lived forever.

I remember the days after 9-11 living in, if not, fear, then in at least apprehension. Would there be more terror attacks? If so, of what type? Could we really protect ourselves with enough duct tape and plastic to withstand a "dirty" nuclear bomb? Did we really want to get on an airplane again? Or travel to New York? Or go to any event where large groups of people congregated?

I know that my reaction to that tragedy influenced everything that I did for the following months. My eyes were glued to the television set for news, for assurance, for hope, that things were not as bad as they seemed. For the most part, as each day passed without additional tragedy, I felt a gradual sense of relief, calm, and safety living in America again.

Having seen the images in New York, having heard the many stories of bravery, I developed a keener sense of respect and admiration for firefighters, policemen, and emergency workers of all types. My brother-in-law is a Wilmington policeman, a kind man, a gentle loving father of three boys. When he's in uniform with his police radio and weapon, he's something altogether different, though. He's a defender of my city, a protector of the innocent, in pursuit of "bad guys" who would drive drunk, burglarize a home, or worse yet, commit acts of terror in our country. He and many others like him do this so that you can write responses to questions in your journal, so that I can correct errors in dangling participles and wrong tenses,and so that we can try to return to the nicer, safer, more peaceful way of the world that we knew before September 11, 2001.

Seven years later we do not forget the heroes that fell then. Hopefully, we continue to recognize the heroes that rise and work to protect us now.