September 11, 2001
Another boring day at work. I left for work while my wife
took care of our 22 month old and seven month old boys. At the time I was working
in the Dairy Department for Food Lion in Zebulon, North Carolina. As I was
filling the milk case a customer came by to tell me a plane just hit a building
in New York City. A little doubtful at first but then another customer said that
he had heard the same thing.
I got out my cell phone to call my wife to see if she could
check the news for any info. As she changed the channel I could tell by her
silence that something wasn’t right. I could hear her speaking Japanese as she
was by now crying. She calmed down to tell me that it was a huge airplane had gone
into one of the Twin Towers. Very quickly she screamed out followed by more
crying.
By then I’m walking
to the front of the store to see the manager. My wife composed herself to say she
just saw on TV another plane flying into the other Tower. I told my wife I had
to hang up as I informed my manager what I just heard and he made a phone call
to get more info. A couple of minutes later it looked like a store meeting in
the front of the store as nearly all the employees and customers were trying to
get as much info as possible.
The manager got off the phone asking if anyone had a TV set
that they could bring to the store. I told him I did and I can have it here
quickly. He told me to go get it and not to clock out. I drove home fast as I
listened to news reports of the Pentagon being hit. I was moved to tears. When
I got home my wife was camped in front of the living room TV crying her eyes
out as I ran past her to get the small 13 inch TV set. Before I left I hugged
her and the boys as I told her that everything was going to be OK. She knew as
well as I did that I was lying.
I got back to the store and quickly set up the TV to the store
intercom, broadcasting throughout the store of everything happening. Customers
were coming in just watching the events on TV unfolding as employees came up
front to look as well. After a while it was like a ghost town in the store.
People were either at home or in the cars listening. Even the most macho of men
in the store were crying. The store manager went to a Roses store at the other
end of the shopping center and came back with an American Flag to hang in the
store window.
People began to talk about going to war and killing those
behind the attacks, so much so after seeing many Middle Eastern countries
celebrating these attacks. News channels were showing Palestinians cheering,
dancing and praising the terrorist. To this day I still think of Palestinians
as terrorist supporters. The video images and the way they still act constantly
prove me right on this. And these so called ‘friends of America’ give wonderful
speeches on how they support America but then they go before the people in
their own county to chant for our destruction as they continue supporting the
terrorist financially.
As the President
spoke to the Nation that day, nobody was shopping, for that matter doing
anything. Nobody talked. Everyone just stood there listening to every word that
then President Bush was saying. After the address everyone just looked at each
other as the store became alive with nonstop talking about getting those behind
these attacks. That afternoon it became very busy as people were stocking up
for the long haul. No telling what was going to happen the next day and for
that matter the rest of the week. Even employees were setting aside food in the
dairy cooler. A few days later one of the grocery stockers quit to enlist into
the Army. Couldn’t blame him seeing as everyone wanted to join the service.
As I made it home that night my wife was talking to her
family in Okinawa. The most populated American military personnel area outside
of America. Every military base on the island was on red alert as every local
Okinawan was scared that they could be the next target for the terrorist. But
my sister in law said that even as many military vehicles were moving around
the island, knowing the situation, many Okinawans were just as mad as the
Americans and just as patriotic as well. Scared and ready to do what was
needed.
My wife and I hugged for what felt like an eternity, going through
many emotions as we watched the images on TV. The next day we drove for nearly
the whole day trying to find a place that sold American flags. Department
stores like Wal Mart and Target placed signs on the front entrance saying they
were out of stock as did grocery, hardware even toy stores were out of stock. Luckily
we went to the mall and found the local newspaper stand had a special edition
of the newspaper printed with an American flag covering the whole center page.
The front window of our house as with many other houses had this newspaper flag
hanging up on it.
The day started out as a carbon copy of the previous days
but ended totally different. The events ten years ago made me more aware of whom
we call friends and enemies. It made me more patriotic and determined to make
this world safer for my family and others. The end of the world is changing.
Before there were world wars as all nations fought one another. Then it shrunk
down to a few countries fighting each other that lead to just individual people
fighting one another.
The danger of this is the technology has gotten to where one
person can carry a weapon that causes more damage that what could have been
done years ago. The Cold War was scary but predictable. Neither side wanted to
die but the each side played their parts. Now it feels like World War Three where
individuals are willing to die in killing others who are different to their own
belief and lifestyle. I saw countries like Spain surrender to the terrorist after
they experienced their own September 11th. But there are many other
Nations that still stand by America. Nations of different faiths, laws cultural
differences and lifestyles realizing that if the terrorist win, we could lose more
than the freedoms we so much enjoy.
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