They say that there are certain events in your life that you always remember. For generations older than me it was Pearl Harbor, or Kennedy being killed, or maybe the Embassy in Tehran being overrun. For my generation, it was 9/11. In my case, though, theyre wrong about remembering every little detail about the day. I dont remember every single event...I know I was at school in my senior year and then when we found out we went and watched the news coverage until they sent us home, but thats it for the details for me. I dont remember who I talked to or what was said or anything like that. Even my memory of the timeline of the attacks is fuzzy...and Im fine with that, because those details dont matter. What I do remember is how I felt, which was how I assume we all felt to some degree. I was confused, stunned, and, to be blunt, scared shitless. I kept thinking that if the definition of terrorism is to cause terror, then they did a hell of a job. I was scared for my family and for my way of life. I was also scared for myself and my friends. We were HS Seniors fast approaching our 18th birthdays, and we all knew the US was going to war. Some of my friends even did. I was lucky in that by some miracle nobody in my immediate circle of family and friends died or was seriously injured. In the week after, nobody really knew what to do. To return to our regularly scheduled lives seemed callous, but to stay in the fetal position under our desks was pointless. For me, this one little musical performance kicked me out of that funk. I realized that I could move on with things I knew and loved (namely...rock music) without it being disrespectful to what had just happened a couple of weeks earlier. After seeing this on TV, I put my Foo Fighters CD in my car and listened to My Hero on repeat nonstop for probably 2 weeks. The song had taken on new life and new meaning, and that helped me come to grips with my new life. I know everyone had their own moment or series of moments that helped get them through that time. This was mine, and I figured I would share.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Sep 2014 14:56:30 +0000