Never Forget

It's a morning carved in to my mind more than any other morning of my lifetime. I can tell it to you like it happened yesterday. I woke early, which was odd, as I was a college student and had had a little bit too much fun the night before. Not only did I awake early, I was alert, and ready to take on the day. I got dressed and actually looked decent--rather than my usual jeans/t shirt, no makeup, hair in ponytail attire I sported to class. Nope, not this day. This day I chose a cute little sweats matching outfit. I fixed my hair. I put on makeup. Not once did I turn on the television or radio. I knew it was going to be a good day. I stepped outside and relished in the beautiful day. There was not a cloud in the clear blue sky. The sun was shining gloriously. It was going to be a fabulous day. I got in the car and headed to campus. Immediately, something felt off kilter. There was no music on the radio--and the DJ sounded like she'd been crying. "If you need counseling, the University has set up centers throughout campus." What?!?! My immediate first thought was "oh God. Our campus has been gunned down." My stomach flipped. The DJ then said the words I will never forget. "World Trade Center has been attacked..." The rest of the words all jumble in my mind these days. I swallowed hard. Trying to fathom. Ok. We've had the Trade Center attacked before. We'll make it through. I continued driving to campus. It wasn't until I parked my car and was grabbing my back pack that my world halted. "Second tower down. Plane in PA down. Pentagon attacked..." My father was scheduled to be at the Pentagon. I don't even know if I shut my car door. I took off in a sprint to my sorority house (UP a steep HILL) just knowing I needed a phone. I got to the house and ran into the community room where 50 of my sisters were staring at the television in shock. Some were crying, some were staring and some were in another world. None of us believed what we were seeing. I grabbed the phone and dialed my father's number. Immediately to voicemail. My stomach dropped further. I felt like I was going to be sick. I called my mother. Immediately to voicemail. Oh God, Oh God. It wasn't for another two hours that I'd learn my father never reported to Washington. By some Grace of God, his meeting was cancelled at the last minute and he stayed home. But not without that guilty remorse he always feels when a soldier goes down. He lost friends that day. He lost confidence in the world that day. We all did. The rest is a haze. I gathered with my closest friends at someone's apartment. We sat and stared at the television for hours and hours. We would sit outside sometimes just to get away from the horror. I cried so much that day and days to follow--I felt dehydrated. A lot of times, I drank away the horror that was being lived out in our nation. From all the horror, we did get one positive from it. Our Nation gained pride. Pride some of us had never witnessed. On September 10th, 2001, neighborhoods throughout the nation sported football team flags and yard decorations. By nightfall on September 11th, these neighborhoods had transformed into Old Glory sporting, candle burning memorials. Throughout the nation, men and women said, "what can we do?" Throughout the nation, Americans forgot about the small things, whether their neighbor was Republican or Democrat, who was black or white. Those trivial things were gone...and for the first time in many's memory, we were all simply American. Fast forward....seven years later. Where are we? People yelling and screaming that we're war mongers and oil fanatics. People yelling and screaming that we ignore international affairs too much. People yelling and screaming that we're too harsh on illegal immigrants. People FORGETTING what it felt like seven years ago today. People already forgetting what it felt like to be an American. People forgetting when men and women walked out of their desk jobs and joined the military. Where each and everyone of us stared at the tv in shock. We have forgotten as a nation what that day felt like. Now we're more concerned with the little things (just as we were before). Half of this nation now wants to elect a man into office that has only held a Senate position for 140 days--and has NEVER considered leaving his desk job to join the military. Half of this nation wants to elect a man into office that doesn't place his hand over his heart when reciting the Pledge. Half of this nations wants to elect a man into office who's wife stated PUBLICLY that she was not proud to be an American. What have we come to? How can this even be acceptable? I'll never forget. I'll never falter in my pride.