Where was I five years ago?
Well, I heard the news just after walking the dog. That was weird in and of itself because Jimmy normally walked the dog. Still, when I walked back into my parents' house, I remember as Jimmy practically yelled the news at me.
"Joe, someone's crashed a plane into the twin towers in New York."
Huh?
As a junior in high school, it just seemed surreal. How? Why? Do I know anyone who worked in those buildings?
I remember watching the TV in my parents' room and watching as the broadcast shifted to the pentagon crash. We just stood there, barely breathing. We watched with our eyes wide open, staring in disbelief.
My dad was the only one that thought of his sons going to school that day. To be sure, it was the last thing on my mind (not that that was any different from any other morning, but let's not argue over technicalities.)
My high school was silent. With approximately 500 males roving the halls of a school contained in half a city block, you didn't hear a word. And those tardy bells seemed deafening.
In nearly every class that day, we just sat and stared at the television. The only exceptions were pre-calculus and biology.
My pre-cal teacher, crazy nun that she is, made a claim so audacious that I don't know if I'll ever be able to forget it.
"We won't be watching the news. We're going to keep going with our lessons. That's the way THEY would want it."
What the HELL? How on earth do you know what the victims of this devastating attack would want for your pre-cal class to do? You know, if you want to continue, just say it. But don't go making assumptions about the opinions of the recently departed.
In biology, my teacher forced us to watch a movie. She said we had to get our minds off what was going on. I didn't really agree with her, but I think he heart was in the right place. And I can't remember for the life of me what movie we actually watched...
Yeah, I remember that day. And I won't be forgetting any time soon.
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Daily Ditty:
OK Go - Let It Rain
2 comments:
Some memories never go away. I'd just moved to Florida and wasn't working. Sweety called and woke me up and just told me to turn on the t.v. I remember seeing that second plane hit. Surreal.
Hey Joe- do you have a Myspace page? If not you should get one.
Just an idea.... that's all.
Jude
PS - I logged as anonymous because I have forgotten my password since I don't use my blog anymore... :)
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