Friday, September 11, 2015

9-11

KJ - Today in English my teacher talked to us about September 11th. Do you remember what you were doing when it happened?

Me - Yes. I remember every detail about that day.

KJ - She said you would.

Me - Dad remembers, too.

KJ - She was right. She said anyone older then about 20 remembers everything because it was so hard. (Pause) Did you know people jumped out of those buildings?

So we talked. I told him about my 8 o'clock Book of Mormon class at BYU, where someone said that the World Trade Center had been hit by a small plane. That sounded pretty weird, so I'd rushed back to my dorm and gone to the basement to watch the tv's. The second tower had just collapsed. The horror felt everywhere, even in Brazil where Aunt Sil watched, too.  The jammed phone lines. The news reporters, not knowing where the President was. Waking up my roommate with my tears. The grounded airplanes, and when I finally saw one flying again at an outdoor play weeks later and it scared me.

KJ - My teacher said it also brought everyone together. That everyone felt united and good things happened, too.

I told him how true that was. That suddenly our difference didn't matter, the kindness and love that was shown for other people and our country. The patriotic songs on the radio. The faith displayed.
It was a good talk. We talked for a minute about Pearl Harbor, too, and how the terrible scars of events like that mark generations. I know this day will be marked for the rest of my life. But the pictures, sounds, news clips take me right back, and it's too terrible for words, for all of us, even after all these years.

I'm thankful for a good teacher who cares enough to talk to her students and try to help them understand.
As hard as it is, we can never forget.

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