Remembering 9/11: 10 Years Later

Where were you on Sept. 11, 2001, when you heard the news? I was at home watching the morning news as I always did, eating a bowl of cereal and getting ready for school. I was a senior in high school and I had open campus first period, so I didn't need to be there until 10 a.m. I remember being confused much like the news reporters as they watched the first tower billowing with smoke from the first plane crash. I remember thinking it was just a horrific accident and nothing more. An odd place for a plane to go down.

And then, watching live the news reporter still talking and seeing a second plane come into view and crash into the second tower before he even knew what was going on behind him. It was that moment when I got chills of confusion--something unexplainable had happened. How could two plane crashes hit two of the tallest buildings in NYC at approximately the same time?

As the day unraveled, I remember getting to school and not doing anything that day except watch TV. To most high school students this would seem like a dream come true. But this was a nightmare. It was almost torture as we had to watch people suffering, and ultimately dying because of this attack.

Kelsey and I watched the two-hour special on NBC Friday night and were brought back to that horrible day 10 years ago. Our pastor gave a great sermon Saturday evening about the day, and last night we watched an interesting documentary on the events called "Loose Change 9/11."

It doesn't really matter what the cause of 9/11 was, but rather who we remember. Let us all remember the countless heroes who gave their lives in pursuit of saving others. Remember the ones who ran into the storm when most were running away from it, and when most of the country had to sit in front of their TV sets and helplessly watch.

This side of heaven we will never know the complete truth surrounding the events of 9/11. My hope is in Jesus and He is who I focus on. It's always tough to try and figure out why God lets these types of things happen, but our pastor put it well this weekend in saying, "Think about all of the '9/11s' that God has stopped over the years." I thought that was extremely insightful and encouraging.

I'll leave you with the question I opened with: Where were you on Sept. 11, 2001?