I Remember September 11, 2001

Eight years ago today was my oldest son's first day of preschool. It was a co-op preschool, and since I was in charge of scheduling parents, I scheduled myself to spend this day with him working in the classroom.

The kids were loud and squirrely as they were exposed to the new school structure setting for the first time in their little lives. The father that was assigned to work with the teacher and I this first day received a cell phone call. I didn't even have a cell phone then. The look on his face was a little off, but all he said to us as he tried to find a radio station in the classroom was that a plane had crashed into a building in New York. I don't know if the classroom noise was just too high to listen to the radio or what, but he gave up on that as I glanced over periodically from the other side of the room and walked away. We continued about our day. It was a lot of fun. I still enjoy watching my children experience things for the first time as much as I did that day.

Working at preschool meant that we, the parents, cleaned up after class each day, so that is what we did. When finished, I placed him into his car seat, buckled him up, and headed home talking about his first school day (a whole 2 hours). I noticed there wasn't any traffic, which is odd, on the road we were taking. I turned on the radio and heard for the first time what most of the rest of the world had been listening to for a few hours by that time. My heart dropped in my chest and I started glancing at the skies as I drove next to our local airport. I had a feeling that it was going to happen everywhere across our country. I hurried home.

I walked in the back door to find my husband watching the TV who turned and looked at me with his mouth half open in disbelief holding our 20-month-old in his lap. I remember crying at the images of women and men holding hands and leaping to their deaths from the burning buildings. My heart was breaking for my children as I held them tight.

My heart still goes out to the families and loved ones of all those lost that day. I may not have ever heard the words Taliban or al Qaeda prior to that day, but I remind myself daily what they are and of the threat they represent to my children, their future, and our country.

I will never understand how any group, be it religious, social, race-oriented, etc. can classify another entire group into one sweeping generalization that it warrants attacks of any kind. I recognize their shortcomings, their ignorance, and that somewhere along the line someone failed them in raising a truly well-rounded/compassionate human being.