Where were you when the world stopped turning, on that September day?
DSC_0604, originally uploaded by sarahelizabethreece.
8 years. history. most of which has changed our lives in some way. Are we still scared of terrorists? Are we still fighting in a war that doesn't seem to end or get better?
I was probably 15 years old, in my second class of the day. Asian studies. With Mr. Madden. Someone from the office went around to all the classrooms to tell us what happened, although we couldn't get the television working. We moved on to the next class, and I had biology. The teacher turned the lights out and we watched the tv to see the towers fall. That was history, and my future. Our future. I remember how mad the other teachers later in the day said that we couldnt watch tv and we could be told what happens later. They obviously did not feel the intensity of what happened, or didn't care about what was happening to our country. I will never forget that day, and although I never lost anyone that I knew related to that, it's a strong emotional buildup I get when I think about everything related to it.
This photograph is from June 2008, Ground Zero of the WTC. Blocked off from the public. I'm pretty sure at this time there were no tours allowed in there for some reason... so that is why the group I was with didn't have the chance to do so. But across the street, is a church where people went to pray. It is covered inside with memorabilia from the missing people ads, and items that were left at the site in memory of. Banners were hung that were made, and its a really emotional place to be. Quiet. The last time I was even close to that area I was on the same trip I was on now. The Freedom Tour. It was a lot different then, a year before the towers were hit, I was almost 14. Less security, less precautions. I have those photos of the towers as they stood, right there along the horizon and city scape of NYC.