9/11 Attack, 2001, by Craig Wojcik

From MemoryArchive

Who: Craig Wojcik
What: 9/11 Attack
When: 9/11/01
Where: New York City
       

I clearly remember what I was doing on September 11, 2001, when the first plane struck the World Trade Center. I had just entered my algebra class. I noticed that Ms. Johnson was out and we had a substitute teacher. When the substitute was about to begin the class, my English teacher entered the room and asked her if he could have a word with her in the hallway. She left the room for about five minutes to return to tell us “we have just been bombed.” We were instructed to go into the neighboring room where we found a television set to the news. My classmates and I watched in shock as one of the World Trade Center towers was engulfed in flames. In the following class, we were allowed to once again return to that room to watch the television. As we were watching, we saw the second plane crash into the other tower, and we could hear the screams of the reporter and bystanders.

Throughout the whole day, I hardly left that room. The school day was not even a school day. We just watched the television as we learned of the plane that crashed into the Pentagon and later of the one that went down in Pennsylvania. Even though I did not know anyone personally who was involved in these incidents, I felt remorse for those people. I also felt very vulnerable knowing that we were attacked on our own soil, something that has not happened since Pearl Harbor. Along with these emotions, I was angry because those who were killed or injured were not soldiers; they were businessmen, secretaries, and everyday people. This being true, it could have just as easy been a family member that could have been apart of this tragedy.