I remember exactly what I was doing on this morning 10 years ago. Do you? I was still in college at Auburn. I remember it being a beautiful Tuesday morning hardly a cloud in the sky. My roommate, Scarlotte came flying into my bedroom as I was just waking up. She grabbed the remote and turned my TV on. “She said look at this!” I remember thinking it was some type of advertisement for an action type Hollywood movie. It was a live picture of the north tower (trade center) on fire. For a while the TV announcers were thinking it was a small plane that must have lost control of the plane. No one was exactly sure what was going on. As Scarlotte and I were glued to the TV watching the flames ignite the building, we saw the second plane hit the south tower at 9:03. From that moment Scarlotte and I knew that our country was under attack. The morning kept getting worse. At 9:37 AM a third plane hit the Pentagon. At 10:03 AM the news reported that a fourth plane had crashed in Shanksville, PA. Later it was revealed that the amazing and courageous crew and passengers tried to seize the plane from the hijackers who’s intended target was the Capitol or the White House.
Still to this day, I can’t seem to find words to describe those moments as I then watched the Twin Towers collapse.
I remember driving home to my parents house that day trying to take in what had really just happened. I remember passing all the gas stations on the way home that were so crowded that AUPD had to direct traffic to get into the gas staion. I along with probably the rest of the country was thinking the world was coming to an end. I remember being glued to the TV for the next days to come mourning and grieving as if I just lost great friends.
Nearly 3,000 total people died that day. Innocent people who set out to do their daily routines/jobs lost their lives due to such a demonic, hateful, and vicious attack on our AMERICAN soil with OUR AMERICAN planes! It was comforting to hear our then leader, President George W. Bush offer these comforting words on that September night:
Tonight, I ask for your prayers for all those who grieve, for the children whose worlds have been shattered, for all whose sense of safety and security has been threatened. And I pray they will be comforted by a power greater than any of us, spoken through the ages of Psalm 23: Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for YOU are with me.” President George W. Bush September 11, 2001.
He then stated these words a few weeks later:
“Our enemies have made the mistake that America’s enemies always make. They saw liberty and thought they saw weakness. And now, they see defeat. Now, we have inscribed a new memory alongside those others. It’s a memory of tragedy and shock, of loss and mourning. But not only of loss and mourning. It’s also a memory of bravery and self-sacrifice, and the love that lays down its life for a friend–even a friend whose name it never knew.”
- President George W. Bush
So many lives were forever changed. I am so grateful for the brave souls of that day. Some of whom that lost their lives being courageous. I’m grateful for those brave souls that survived that day and the days that came afterward; the ones who spent tiring days and sleepless nights searching for survivors. I love the fact that in such a horrific time, our country came together in unison. Democrat or Republican – it didn’t matter. We were AMERICANS pulling together finding strength in each other. God bless those lives that were lost. God bless those families that had to endure that loss. God Bless the US Military for going to the front lines and continuing to fight for our freedom. God Bless our Amazing Country. . . . .U-S-A!! We will never forget!
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