Reflections on September 11, 2001

Even though I am only seventeen years old, I remember the day that 9/11 claimed the lives of many people. I was in third grade, sitting at my desk, when our teacher came in to our classroom looking very disturbed. Rumors went around that something had happened but I had no idea what I was to find out when I went to my grandmother's house. My whole family sat in her living room after I got home from school. The news showed scene after scene of the two planes crashing into the World Trade Centers. Vast explosions came out of the side of the buildings. People inside the buildings jumped out windows in order to avoid a more painful death. When the towers fell clouds of dust filled New York's streets. Living in Newville, Pennsylvania, an extremely rural town, I had no idea what the people of New York were feeling, nor what they really saw happening in front of their eyes. Another thing I remember is the reaction around the world. In particular, the news showed people in Paris stopping along the street to see what was happening on the television, only to find out that America had been attacked by Islamic extremists. The TV showed America's largest city coming to a stand-still.
I am sure that everyone who was old enough to remember that day, will surely look back at that day on every September 11 to come. I am also sure that many people are angry that our nation was attacked by these Islamic extremists. I am too. However, we cannot live in fear, nor can we live in hatred. Perhaps many have heard of the Koran burning that a pastor in Florida heartily encouraged. I am not in favor of such retaliation against the people who believe and follow that religious path. Instead, I would prefer to reflect on the past few years and wonder what the world would be like if this even didn't happen, or if America had taken different paths to solve the problem. Today, is not a day of anger, nor is it a time for a widening of the racial or religious differences that people have across America. Instead, it is a time for us to gather behind our nation in order to solve problems that relate back to September 11 and problems that even don't have anything to do with the event. At that particular moment everyone in America united. Why are we so hesitant to do that in the economic hardships people are presented with today? Fellow Americans cry out for help, yet some of us are so hesitant to offer it. Our President and our Congressmen need our support just as much as they need our understanding. Hopefully, reflecting on 9/11 will help us unite once more against a common enemy.