Eleven years ago, this country suffered the worst attack on home soil since Pearl Harbor. Looking back on that day, I find myself surprised, realizing that I did not fully understand the magnitude of what happened.
Like many people, my day started off as it normally did, but when I arrived at school, it was quickly apparent that something was not right. I remember seeing worried and troubled looks on the faces of my teachers. I remember catching glimpses of the news reports before the administration instructed teachers to turn off the broadcasts.
When I got home, I clung to the television, watching and digesting more news than I had ever seen up to that point. I remember the moment when they named Osama bin Laden as the mastermind behind the elaborate terror plot.
What I could not have imagined at that moment, sitting in my grandparent’s living room as a sixth grader, was just how much was going to change. Since that day, the United States has been involved in two wars and the word ‘terrorist’ has become something we use in everyday speech. The way we live our lives and fly on airplanes has fundamentally changed, and, in some respects, our global image has been altered.
What has not changed, however, is that we are all Americans. On the eleventh anniversary of those attacks, it is time again that the nation come together and remember those who have lost their lives. For the victims’ families, it is a day where they should feel unparalleled warmth from other Americans.
For those families, it is small solace that this is the first year of 9/11 without bin Laden. I hope, as do so many others, that his death brought peace to the people affected by his actions. It is my hope that a 9/11 without bin Laden is one step closer to healing for them and for our nation.
It is my belief that the first step to this healing process must begin with a loss of hatred. So on this day Southeastern, be extra nice to the people around you. Offer smiles, waves and ‘hellos’ instead of just pressing on with the daily grind. Let’s remember and honor the victims of Sept. 11 by being courageously kind to one another.