9 Years Ago...

It was 9 years ago that our country was attack by terrorists. I remember the day very clearly. It was beautiful out. A perfect temperature, the sky was bright blue and the sun was shining bright. The weather was the complete opposite of the darkness and hatred that was attacking our country.

I was in 9th grade. I was in band class when the attacks happened- the news was quickly spreading but nobody seemed to understand what was happening. I heard "a plane crashed in a building in New York" I remember the group of kids laughing and joking about the idiot pilot. Never once thinking this was the 'Pearl Harbor' of my generation. Mr. Chambers didn't mention anything, he just went on conducting like any other day. We just kept playing and practicing. Perhaps he didn't know what to say, perhaps he didn't know. I then went to American Cultures with Mr. McDermott. He was completely silent. He had the TV on and we sat there, in complete silence and watched history in the making.

I had so many questions and fears. I couldn't grasp any of what was going on. I was naive. Why would somebody do this? How can somebody hate our great country so much? What did this mean for the future? Would my life as I know it change? There was so much I didn't understand. There is still so much I don't understand.

I remember the rumor that a plane was headed for Pittsburgh. I remember the fear I had that I my parents life could be endangered. Would we sit down to dinner as a family tonight? For many families in NYC, DC and all over the country, the answer to that question was a no.

I remember all air traffic being grounded. The silence of sky was haunting. You don't realize how much we grow accustom to those noises until they are gone.

I left school early that day. I spent the day with my family grateful they were safe and we were together. I remember going to my grandma's that day and I remember my dad saying he was glad my grandpa wasn't alive to see this.

Nobody I know lost their life that day. In fact, nobody I know has lost their life fighting for our freedom since these attacks. I can't claim to be affected by the attacks nearly as much as those families who had loved ones killed that day or the families who have servicemen who won't return home to our great country. But I won't forget what happened either. I won't forget that evil and hatred is so real and I won't fail to cling to the hope and goodness that is Christ.

I love being an American and I love the freedoms that citizenship brings. I appreciate all those who sacrifice on a daily basis to give my family and I those freedoms. But September 11, 2001 taught me that the world can shattered so quickly and unexpectedly.Even though we live in the country with the greatest military with the best resources available, we still live in a fallen world. There is only one way there will ever be peace. I hope that as we reflect on the reality of this evilness and remember the families who lost loved ones that we can find hope and comfort in the sovereignty and grace of the Lord.