I know everyone is thinking back where they were ten years ago today. I am one of those people who was watching everything unfolding and left in shock.
I was on my way to campus at the University of Missouri – Columbia with my roommate. We were heading to campus as he had class early. We were listening to the radio just after 8am our time and heard two planes had crashed in the World Trade Center. I went to the library to see what was going on and was watching everything unfold on television. I remember trying to get online to access the news websites (MSNBC, CNN, etc.) and they were overloaded and not coming up. I remember watching the towers come down on a 13 inch television in the library with about 100 other students. Then we started to wander around campus. Classes were being cancelled. I called home and was talking with my parents. We had a friend who had just graduated from Mizzou who had gone to New York City and we could not get ahold of him. Later we found out he was about 20 blocks away from the devastation there.
All sporting events were cancelled for that week. Airports were shut down. Our country was in lockdown. No one was going anywhere.
Eventually things started to get back to normal; however, we are now referred to as living in a post-9/11 society. We seem to be in a place where America was after Pearl Harbor 1941.
Two videos got to me after this event. One was made almost a day or two afterwards. U2 had recently released an album and MTV put together a montage of the events to the song “Walk On.”
The second one I heard a few years later. We wonder where God is when we go through troubles and yet when life is good, He is all around us. We ask why could He ever let this happen if he was such a loving God. Guess what? He was there. He was there with everyone who died that day and those who survived. He was with everyone, like He is everyday. Some just choose not to see. It is quite emotional to listen to and see the photo montage.
Lastly, being from St. Louis, I had to add this. We watched this live in Columbia, MO and I lost it listening to this. Jack Buck is a Hall of Fame announcer who made one of his last appearances at the first game since 9/11. He got into poetry near the end of his life and he wrote this poem. He read it to the sold out crown at Busch Stadium II.
This year is the ten year anniversary of it; however, make sure we remember this daily. Remember those who risked their lives for others that day. Remember those who are serving right now halfway around the world so we can continue to be free. I am thankful for all of them and I will make sure my children will understand this in the future as well.
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