9/11

I was sitting in Mrs. McDougal's sophomore english class.

We were all being very chatty, until Mrs. McDougal finally said in astonishment, "I can't believe you guys aren't watching this."

It was then that we finally turned our heads to the small TV in the upper corner of the room.

I was only 15, and I don't think I fully grasped the reality of what was happening. I didn't know what the World Trade Center was, or the Pentagon.

But as the days went on, I found myself glued to the TV screen. I hated feeling so helpless. I started cutting out articles and pictures from the newspaper (didn't use the internet much back then) and I put them all in a big envelope to save. I could probably still find that envelope in my parents basement somewhere.

Now, I can't believe it's been 10 years. Time flies!

This 10 year anniversary has me pretty emotional about the whole thing. I feel so much more strongly about it now. I don't know if it's because I'm older, or that I'm a wife and mother now, but I have felt very patriotic this weekend. I am so overwhelmed with gratitude for those who sacrificed their lives that day.

God bless America. I LOVE my country!

We went to Sandy city to see all the flags and the new statue of the firemen. Each flag had a card tied to it with the name of a person who died.

It was pretty amazing, and it has also triggered a lot of questions from Jack. He keeps asking, "why were those people mean?" or "why did those people died?"

He liked hearing me read all the different names and ages off the cards that were tied to the flags.

It's hard to explain to a 3 year old how awful people can be, but we've just tried to remind him how important it is to be kind to everyone.