September 11, 2013
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9/11
I remember being in school on this day, 12 years ago. That's about it. Most of the day was a blur leading up to the reports of the World Trade Center. I can't even recall if we (the students) had a TV set to watch the reports. We were stuck inside a school during a very confusing time and I was ten shades of pissed off.
Our principal was telling all the students about his first time seeing the towers in New York and how it all seemed endless. He described how he had to look all the way up, almost bending his entire body just to see the top, which was impossible. The thing that bothered me was his grin. He was describing his experience and I wanted to do was punch him in the face because he was so out of character. The man was usually void of any emotion, you're garden variety dictator. Now, as an adult, I realized he probably was trying to keep himself calm and smiling is a nice way to reassure people that everything is OK. Still, he needed to get punched in the face. Years after graduating, I found out he was getting probed by Uncle Sam for stealing money from the school. For all I know, he's probably in prison right now, getting traded for a pack of cigarettes.
Back to 9-11, most of the students were rattled because information was scarce. Regardless of information, I do remember that we all wanted to go home and be with our families. The principal wouldn't allow it, which was probably a good move. At the time, I wanted to walk out and uppercut anyone that stood in my way (including the principal). I mean, the hermit in me wanted to shut the world out for a while. I needed my own surroundings.
For the rest of the day, things were mostly quiet and for some reason, I remember the lights being dim as fuck. I'm not even sure why. You'd figured during a scary time like that, it's important to maintain a sense of stability and the fuckin' illusion of normal. Nope... The lights were dim and with all the news and speculation, combined with a broken routine, it really felt weird---almost sickening.
Of course, my tiny experience of that day was absolutely nothing compared to the folks living in New York, especially those near ground zero. The entire country felt something that day, but I will always have a special place in my heart for the people of New York. The firefighters, the police, the rescue workers, all the citizens... They were put through the ultimate test.
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