September 11th (We must not forget)(Ed DeRousse) SEPTEMBER 11th (We must not Forget)


“Americans were fearful, tearful, and angry when they heard about the airliners crashing into those New York Twin Towers, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania on September 9, 2001.

We sat glued to the TV as we watched those towers crash down in clouds of smoke. We saw images of survivors, covered in the powdered remnants of those collapsed towers, running out of clouds of smoke. We heard about the brave firemen and policemen running into those same clouds.

There was lots of crying, lots of questions, lots of sympathy and empathy. The country was stunned. We felt attacked on our own American soil. Most of us felt like we were punched in the stomach. We all wondered how our country was going to react to this surprise punch? It seemed we all stood with and behind America.

I know we all suffered that day. Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives on September 11, 2001. So many had lost so much.

We have all had time to reflect and years of history are behind us. Time gives us all a different perspective. But we can not conveniently forget the past, because it is too painful to remember. Eleven years later it is, for me, a day of mixed emotions. I most assuredly feel differently about 9-11 than I once did. But as long as I live, I will never forget that day.

Is 9-11 just another day? Or have you forgotten?”

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This is a letter to the editor I submitted to some local newspapers. But this does not tell the whole story as to why it was written and then submitted. I would like to tell the story behind the letter now.

September 11 (9-11-01) is a most memorable date in American history. Hopefully, most adults living in America today would agree. I say hopefully, because with the passing of time tragedies tend to lose there importance.

Let’s do some contemplating about this day of heartbreak and misfortune.

I will never forget where and what I was doing on Tuesday morning on the 9th day of September, 2001, at approximately 9:00 a.m. I was working as an educator in a correctional facility at the time. An inmate walks into my room and asks me if I'd heard about an airplane that crashed into the Empire State Building. Access to radio and TV was not available to me once I entered my building. But most inmates had them in their cells.

I dismissed the inmate’s question. They often watched strange things on the TV.

About fifteen minutes later the inmate returned and told me that a second plane had crashed into another building in New York. He wanted to know, “Did you hear about it? Do you know what’s happening?” Something was different about his words this time. I knew this inmate. His facial features and the way he expressed his words made me feel his concern. I knew something was definitely going on. It was time to come out of my office and check it out.

The inmate was suddenly called away by a guard and the school building was being emptied of all inmates. The facility was going on lockdown. It was then I was told that as a precautionary measure we were going on “lockdown”.

Work had pretty much come to an end for the rest of the day. All of us in the prison, staff and inmate alike, were watching televisions or listening to radios trying to get more information about what was unfolding.

No one could believe what we were hearing. The more we listened, the more bad news we got. No one asked, but I know everyone thought it.

'Who did this horrible thing? Why? What’s going to be done about it?'

Then we heard about the Pentagon and at almost the same time a plane crashing into a field in Pennsylvania. This was becoming overwhelming. Some of us were tearing up. We felt helpless, fearful, angry. All at the same time. What questions do you ask at a time like this? And even when questions were asked, answers were slow in coming.

The word terrorist was used many times by all the media in describing the events of the day. Up until that day, the word terrorist, was a word used in movies. I didn’t really feel very close to the word.

My wife was teaching in a local elementary school. I knew she would have her hands full with her students. I was sure there was no way her students would not be aware of these tragic events unfolding in America at that moment. How could anyone not know?

I was scheduled to take off at noon that day, and by that time, several thousand people had lost their lives.

Although my wife was going to get home a couple of hours later, I wanted to get home as quickly as I could. I knew I would be able to find out more details about what my fellow workers were now calling “an attack on America”.

I saw video of airliners hitting the Twin Towers. I watched those towers come crashing down in clouds of smoke. I saw images of survivors, covered in the powdered remnants of those collapsed towers, running out of clouds of smoke. I watched courageous fireman and policemen run into those same clouds. I saw the destruction left by the plane that crashed into the Pentagon. I saw what was left of the airplane that crashed in Pennsylvania.

I remember thinking, 'All this. Is it over? Do I have anything to fear? All those lives are just…gone! Why?' I felt the need to talk with my family about what was happening.

But, for me there was another difficulty. September eleven is also the day my wife and I celebrate our vows of marriage. It was our anniversary, so I had previously scheduled a half day off. I was taking off early to insure I had enough time to prepare myself for the evening’s activities. When I left for work, I was looking forward to celebrating our thirtieth wedding anniversary.

The events of 9-11-01 changed the significance of our anniversary, forever.

I knew my wife would feel the need to share her feelings about what she heard. She would want me to share mine. I wanted to know what she told her students and how they handled the news.

I knew she would want to know how my friends were feeling. I also knew she would be concerned about whether or not the inmates would get unruly because of this.

Our daughter was away at college and our son was working in Japan. We needed to know how they were.

We needed time to collect our thoughts. We needed time to pray.

Like almost all Americans that day, we were suffering. We felt celebrating what we had, did not seem right. So many had lost so much. We believed most of those who lost their lives had no choice. Yet we also knew some chose to take the risk and lost their lives as a result.

How could we celebrate? There were so many unanswered questions.

Nearly three thousand people can no longer celebrate anything because they lost their lives. Many years later Soldiers are fighting and possibly giving up their lives on our anniversary date.

Time gives everyone the opportunity to reflect on history and perhaps change one’s perspective. For some, the significance and/or importance dims a bit. For me, I will never forget what happened on that tragic day.

I most assuredly feel differently about September 11 than I once did. It once was a day my wife and I used to celebrate us. But today, it is a day of mixed emotions.

I will never forget 9-11-01.

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