Lest We Forget

Today is September 11. 8 years ago I was waking up at about 5:55 A.M. and the DJs on KFRC made the announcement that an airplane crashed into one of the twin towers. Nothing was really known, even the type of plane, out on the West Coast. So, life went on. Showered. Checked on my mom. Caretaker came and left for work. The more I heard on the radio the more incredible the news reports became. Upon arriving at school, the playground was abuzz with the news that apparently we had been attacked by terrorist. At 8:10 we all entered the school building- teacher modeling calm to the befuddled kids. Well, at 8:30 our principal came on the public address system telling us that school would be closed for the day; the mayor announced the closure of schools until further notice. Little by little parents trickled to the school and the children were dismissed in an orderly fashion. While waiting for parents, we tried to keep the kids calm by playing games, praying, doing some sort of school work and even showing a film. By noon, the children were gone and I was allowed to go home.

Upon arriving, my mom's caretaker was more "disturbed" than the kids. She was actually loud and being obnoxious and constantly stating we were going to war. Luckily, this caretaker, her niece, lasted only a week. And my poor mom, already with dementia, kept saying "Something terrible has happened." That was September 11, 2001.

The months after 9/11 were very patriotic, to say the least. Everyone was nice to each other. Neighbors who never spoke actually asked how things were. By March of 2002 America returned to "normal" - you know, road rage, not being nice, etc.

8 years later it seems that it is becoming a footnote in American history. Let us not let it be just another day. Sure, it has been named "Patriot's Day" but what is a patriot to some of us?

One thing I learned in my early childhood years was to love my country. Things seemed so much simpler in a time when political correctness did not exist. To be a patriot, as the Sisters of the Holy Family, and later the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur taught was to love God and country. To be respectful of the flag when reciting the Pledge of Allegiance; to sing the National Anthem with pride. The older I get, these cherished things I learned as a child are slowly drifting away. I try to instill love of God and country to my students, and hopefully they listen and will participate in government the older they get.

On a personal note, in summer of 1984 I was able to visit New York City for the first time. To see the amazing Twin Towers, along with other landmarks- the Empire State Building, the Chrysler building and the then Pan Am building- such amazing, colossal edifices. The WTC to me was a setting for various movies: Godspell, King Kong (1976), The Wiz. Little did I know that these towers had an untimely and terrible demise in 2001. The elevator ride to the top was a 90 second thrill ride. Ears popped; the view was astonishing. Aside from seeing my first Broadway musicals, the WTC is truly a priceless moment of history in my life.

To those men and women and children that perished on that awful day, we will still remember you. We may not have met, but you became part of a terrible day only to make us realize that we should not let little things be taken for granted. Appreciate your family, friends, job, life.