I am going to stray off the usual weather topics with this blog post today. Since it is the 10th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, I thought it would a good time to reflect and look back to the day our country changed forever.
10 years ago, I was a college senior at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. Rolled out of bed that morning thinking it was going to be just another ordinary day: going to class, working on homework, etc. Did not turn on the television before class, so I had no idea what was happening along the east coast at that moment. As I arrived at my 9 AM accounting class, I overheard chatter between students that something terrible occurred in New York City and there was damage to the World Trade Center building. Classmates were a bit shocked and confused over the event, that I still did not have all the details of what transpired. Nobody really wanted to talk about it. It was not until I could get to a computer between classes that I got a better context of the events that occurred on this tragic day, and later with the nightly news specials on television. I do not even remember if classes were cancelled that day. Just trying to comprehend the attacks seemed to fill my memory bank.
We were witnessing this generation’s Pearl Harbor attack. While trying to comprehend the magnitude and sadness over the loss of life, one thing was clear - this was an act of war. The images of the towers collapsing with the smoke and soot everywhere are still fused into my memory. Seeing people jump from windows to escape the World Trade Center, or else be burned, can’t be put into words. it changed how we view national security forever. No more “loosey-goosey”, lax policies. We lost a bit of freedom that we had to fight to get back. It made me realize that freedom is not free and it forever will be an on-going battle to retain it.
RS
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