Never forget.

At 8:46 AM on September 11, 2001 2,753 lives were tragically taken.

It is important to not only remember, but also honor those who fought for their lives. We must also remember and honor those who gave up their own lives to save others. It is times like this when we need superheroes. We lost 403 of them that day.

I was 5 years old at the time. I am part of the last generation to remember bits and pieces of this day. I remember being sent home early and being excited because I got to see my mom sooner than expected. I had no idea what was going on. I can remember coming home and seeing the towers on the TV. It didn’t occur to me what exactly was happening.

I remember coming back to school after 9/11 and seeing two boys in my class who had lost a parent that day. I specifically remember one boy crying on my teachers lap while she tried comforting him. I couldn’t even imagine the pain that he was going through. I was too young to fully understand and empathize with my classmates; I just knew that they were hurting.

As more time passed and I got older, in my history classes I learned what exactly had happened that day and why. However, I still do not fully, and probably never will, understand why anybody would ever want to hurt someone in such an evil way. I learned that my mom used to get her breakfast in one of the towers. Had she been there that day I could have lost one of the most important people in my life. I learned that one of the fallen cops was my grandma’s cousin. I learned that two of my grandfathers were part of the New York Fire Department, which made the loss of every brave and self-sacrificing firefighter hit close to home.

In school, every year we would take a moment of silence on that day to remember those who lost their lives. To honor one of the boys’ father who was a fallen cop, we named a park in our town after him. There is an American flag that stands tall right in the middle to remind us that America still stands strong.

We came together as a nation after that day. It appeared as though every American had just a little more compassion, patience and tolerance for others. No matter what race, nationality or political view. Hate was drowned out. Something to think about, especially in today’s political climate was how, as a nation, unified we were after the attacks. Let this serve as a reminder that we, more than ever, have become such a divided country. We should be working to be a more unified nation.

Never forget.

9.11.01