Just four years ago...

Lucretius · Post by **Lucretius** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:25 pm

I was 13. Only 13. I was a freaking kid! I was in middle school. 7th grade. We were just sitting there, I was in the library. Then I realized something, I couldn't hear anything but the low squeal of a TV and the sounds its speakers were producing. I wandered around, trying to find the it (I was a kid, I like watching the telly). Then I found it, and after a few seconds, I imedeately wished I hadn't.

I looked at my watch. It was 9:00. September eleventh. 2001.

I first tried to figure out what the hell was going on! It must have been an accident. That's what everyone was saying. It was an accident. Then 9:02 rolled around, and everyone knew what this was. And it wasn't an accident. Because two planes don't accidentally ram themselves into two adjacent towers.

This was an attack.

Immedeately, the librarians hushed the four kids in the room (myslef included out) and ran to the office. We went back to the set. We were softly talking to each other. A guy next to me said "I think those building are gonna go down..." I told him "Not a chance, these things are built to withstand these things. They're tougher than that." Soon we realized how wrong I was.

Then the class changed, I suddenly found myself walking to the next class.

I'll never forget the moment I sat down in science and we heard a plane in the distance. We heard it only because we were all too stunned to talk. Most knew what was going on, and the rest were too scared to ask.

But I heard the plane. I live in Akron Ohio. It went right by us. Flight 93. I knew something was wrong.

But I didn't find out until I got home what that plane was. I threw up that night. Twice. I couldn't wrap my head around any of it. Who would attack the US? Why? Why couldn't we protect ourselves? I was young...

I spent the next few days studying the Trade Towers. When Nova put out a special called "Why the Towers Fell", I watched it. Taped it. Watched it again and again. I did my best to understand the science.

But to this day, I know there is so much more that I don't understand. The hate that drove people to hurt. The fear that drove people to jump. The spirit that drove people to keep digging, there might be a survivor. I can't imagine any of that. And I'm not sure I want to. I'll just know that it happened.

And I do.

Post by **bicostp** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:33 pm

Well put, Luc. Well put.

I was in middle school, and the teachers watched the news broadcast on a TV with a coat hanger antenna. (Of course they wouldn't let us students watch it.

) Then they brought the class outside and beat around the bush for an hour, basically saying "there's some bad people who do bad things" over and over and effing-OVER! Why couldn't they just level with us? Because it was a small private school which catered for K-8 students and they didn't want to upset the little kids.

Are you going to watch the History (or Discovery, I forget) special that's on at 9 tonight?

Lucretius · Post by **Lucretius** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:37 pm

I would, but I don't have cable. Watched a special on PBS though. Very painful.

Reaperman@home · Post by **Reaperman@home** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:41 pm

I overslept that day--what an odd thing to remember first. The TV was already on when I got up, roomate already watching it. Towers on fire, replays of a plane hitting it. He was in kind of an angry daze, but I only had a few seconds to notice before I was too.

Even the campus hippies were angry--really angry. It sounded like they were about ready to head over to the mideast and pound some people with tire irons. Hippies, with beads and faded phish t-shirts...I'd never seen anything like it. And nobody even knew who did it, but we had a good idea where to go and start hitting people.

Though we knew eachother for years, I had just started going out with the (now) wife on the prior saturday. She was supposed to fly out to meet her brother later that week for his birthday. He was stuck on base, his wife stuck off base, and everybody else stuck 2000+ miles away.

shmagoogin77 · Post by **shmagoogin77** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:48 pm

i was in 3rd grade
im young

Lucretius · Post by **Lucretius** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:49 pm

Wow. Now that is/was young. It's weird to look back, isn't it?

vb_master · Post by **vb_master** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:50 pm

shmagoogin77 wrote:i was in 3rd grade
im young

So you're in 7th now?

Post by **Triton** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 4:51 pm

it is hard to belive that that was four years ago, i remember the exact moment. i was sitting in mr. andres history class, i was in 7th grade. it happened i think just before that class period. i remember mr andre had turned on the radio so we could listen and find out waht was going on, i think we were affected by the attack a lot less than some people like luc, i live in southeastern iowa and its a long way from new your and not even that close to ohio, but that day will be imprinted on my mind forever,

Metroid fan · Post by **Metroid fan** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 5:00 pm

Holy I was NINE and sitting waiting for school to start the suddenly a kid said that the twin towers fell and I thought it was a joke...
not to metion I had no idea that benheck existed...
And I was in fifth grade.

madc0w · Post by **madc0w** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 5:06 pm

i was never told in school, i found out after my mom picked me up. i SHOULD have found out earlier since my sister ditched class to come to my school (i was in the fifth grade and she was in tenth) to tell me my dad was alright cause he was on the opposite side of manhatten and he got out way before anything collapsed. she asks the secretary to see me, but the sec. tells her that she'll tell me for her. she never did. if i had found out during school, you know how scared i would have been. sorry, but i didnt like that secretary. [/rant]

Turbo Tax 1.0 · Post by **Turbo Tax 1.0** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 5:09 pm

i was in 5th grade and they told us we were going home early with grim faces all of us were really happy being 5th graders and not knowin what had happened, when i got home i turned on the t-v and saw and was in utter confusion

shmagoogin77 · Post by **shmagoogin77** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 5:11 pm

they told us that it was a suprise half day

Jeff · Post by **Jeff** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 7:02 pm

I didn't fall asleep that night. It was absolutely horrible.

5 minutes before It happened I was wishing one of my classmates a happy birthday

. It was in grade 5.

Metroid fan · Post by **Metroid fan** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 7:04 pm

Crap ah man that day was awful...
so many people no reason for it i didn't sleep either.

MilkMonster · Post by **MilkMonster** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 7:14 pm

i was in 7th grade. and I really got lucky, cause my ucle worked at the towers but he broke his finger that morning and was at the hospital. talk about devine intervintion.