Where were you?

World Trade Center Collage

September 11th is one of those "before and after" events in our lives. Events like "before I was a mom and after". I will always remember that day.

My oldest son was in high school, my second son in Junior High, and my third son in elementary school. My girls weren't even in school yet. I drove my kids to school as usual, and came home with the girls. I had a lot of laundry to do that day (as usual with a big family), and I decided to flip on the TV to watch while I folded the clean clothes. The first plane had just hit. I remember thinking "What kind if an idiot would run right into a huge building like that? Couldn't he see it? Was it some sort of freak accident?" Then, as I watched, the 2nd plane hit. I was stunned. I couldn't even process what was going on. I hustled the girls into the kitchen for a snack. I didn't want them to be distressed by what was on TV. I couldn't turn it off though. I had to know what was going on. I called my husband and my mother to make sure they were ok and that they had heard (I know we are in Texas and far from New York, but my first instinct was to make sure my family was safe). I thought about picking the kids up from school, but after plenty of back and forth discussion with my husband we decided to let them stay. I hardly sat down all day. I paced restlessly around the house either crying or praying. I dug our flag out of the garage where it had been since July the 4th and hung it up on the house. I held my family close and didn't want to let them out of my sight for quite a while afterward. Our church was standing room only that Sunday and I remember thinking it was too bad that it takes a tragedy to bring some people to church.

My oldest son came home from school that day saying that he wished he were old enough to join the military right then. He had always been one of those boys who loved playing "soldier" and had talked about the military most of his growing up years, but I think September 11th is what sealed it for him. September 11th is also what made me decide that I had better pay attention to what was going on in the world and be a more informed voter.

I would like to know where you were that day and how it changed things for you. If you've blogged about it leave a link, or just leave your thoughts in a comment. It is so important that we don't forget or let our children forget. Let's always remember why we fight.