Remembering September 11th, 2001

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Every year, this date brings with it memories of a few familiar phrases: Never Forget, and “United We Stand.”

But remembering is personal.

This year marks 25 years since September 11th, 2001. A quarter of a century has passed, yet for those of us who lived through that day, many of the memories remain remarkably clear. We remember where we were, who we were with, what we saw, what we heard, and the moment we realized something was terribly wrong. Even after all these years, certain details remain fixed in our minds.

Our experiences of September 11th were different, as were the ways we understood what was happening around us. But like millions of Americans, we each carry a story from that day and from the days that followed.

Today, we wanted to share our memories.

Not because our experiences were extraordinary, but because remembering September 11th also means remembering it through the individual lives it touched. These are our memories of September 11th, 2001.

Bethany:

Some pieces of that day are very clear to me, but some details are completely missing. I was 16 and a junior in high school. I know I was taking a test in Honors US History with Mr. Karl that morning when the first plane hit. But I don’t remember how I found out, or who even told us. I do remember watching the news live in my 3rd period CPR/First Aid class next to my friend Julie. I remember we were all silent and we watched the towers fall. It didn’t seem real. We were all glued to the TVs all day and night just trying to understand what was going on. Just consuming every bit of information we could.

Most of what follows in my memories is just the feelings. Shock, sadness, confusion, fear. We were just 20 minutes from Wright-Patt and there were rumors that the base was a target because it was so important. In the following days, I remember being in the Dollar Tree in Kettering with my mom and sister and one of them heard the sonic boom of a low-flying jet and everyone was terrified.

But mostly, I also remember the unity we all felt. Nobody cared if you were popular, an outcast, a jock, a brain, a theater kid, a marching band kid…we were all just American teenagers. We were all just trying to understand. It seems silly, but one of my clearest memories was that in my Economics class a month or two later, we had to market, produce, and sell something in the cafeteria and because the patriotic sentiment was running so strong at that time, we braided pieces of red, white, and blue bandanas into keychains and sold them. We sold out quickly and won the competition between Economics classes.

Sara:

I was in my US History class when the first plane hit. I remember distinctly watching the clock and counting the minutes until the next class. I was completely unaware and went on to my next class, which was Sculpture and Ceramics. The teacher from the art room next door came in and told my teacher to turn on her TV, a plane had just hit the Pentagon. We turned on the TV thinking it was a terrible accident, having no idea what else we would learn.

I watched in horror as footage played of planes hitting the World Trade Center Towers. I was a 15-year-old sophomore watching real people die on TV. In every class after that, we watched the TV for any updates. Our school principal, Dr. McAtee, announced that we need to continue with classes, so we didn’t let the terrorists win, as if drawing Punnett squares in 4th period biology would defeat them.

By the end of the day, rumors had circulated that Wright-Patt Air Force Base was next to be bombed. My dad worked there, and I remember rushing home after I got off the school bus that afternoon so I could call him (cell phones were not common then). I was so relieved to see his car parked out front as I rushed up the street to my house. The base had sent home all non-essential personnel and my dad explained to me that it was restricted air space, so the base would be immediately on defense if any aircraft flew overhead, especially then.

In the days after 9/11, people who never watched the news (including me) came home every day and turned it on. People became patriotic where before they hadn’t been. Lee Greenwood’s song, “God Bless the USA” played on every radio station and on TV specials.

Where were you on 9/11? What do you remember about that day?

What do you think?