Fifteen years ago, on September 11th, 2001, the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center toppled into destruction, framed by smoke and fluttering papers. And for young children across the East Coast sitting in front of box television sets as their parents frantically grabbed their landline phones, the numbers nine and 11 became more than just an emergency number we learned on fire safety day.
That day, the bubble set up in our wealthy, turn-of-the-millennium society burst for kids everywhere.
Parents of preschoolers through first graders are used to answering the question, "Why?" But that morning, their answers to "Why?" were answers no person wants to give.
I talked to numerous fellow college students this past weekend, and even those in my age group, who were only three or four at the time, can remember faint pictures from the awful day. And most of all, they can remember the questions they asked.
"Mommy, why are you watching that scary movie?"
"Did something blow up?"
"What happened?"
"Is that in New York City? Is [friend/relative] okay? Are they in there?"
"Was it an accident?"
"Are you okay, Mommy?"
"Can I have a snack? Why not?"
"What does hijack mean?"
"What's a terrorist?"
"How'd they take over the plane? Did they use guns?"
"Why are all those papers in the air?"
"Can't they just use really tall ladders from fire trucks to put out the fire?"
"What just happened? Was that another plane?"
"Mommy? Mommy, what's wrong? Was that another plane?"
"Who is that man they keep showing? (Osama Bin Laden)"
"Is the president okay?"
"Is it going to fall down?"
"Can they fix it? They can fix it, right?"
"Can I go play? Do I have to keep watching?"
"Did it fall down? Is it gone forever?"
"What's the Pentagon?"
"Are the people okay?"
"Everyone was outside the building, right?"
"No?"
"Did the people die?"
"Did everyone die?"
That day, the bubble burst. Kids on the East Coast lived under dark, flightless skies in the weeks after. Emergency drills at schools became routine. And the dreadful, moral gray of terrorism became a reality. Death became a reality. For once, our parents did not have all of the answers. They weren't able to tell us what would happen. Our safe and nurturing world was punctured by tragedy beyond our young comprehension.
While we likely recovered from the day quicker than anyone around us, growing up meant every September 11th, we learned more about the day. Retrospect darkened our memories further. As the years pass, our questions change. The impact, for many, even those of us who were very young at the time, has not. While it seems impossible that we will forget what happened that day, let us never forget the weight, the fear, and the tragedy we all faced 15 years ago. For that is what we really mean when we say, never forget. And let us fight for a country where our preschoolers will not have to watch people fall to their imminent deaths on live television, wondering if they will be next.
