Saturday, September 10, 2011

I Will Not Forget - a rant

I was sitting on hall duty, outside the library at the corner of A wing and D wing.  It was my eleventh day of teaching.  From that corner I was able to see all the way down A wing into the guidance office and all the way down D wing to the beginning of E wing. A student, one of mine, was walking towards me --- I was proud I already knew this student's name (Blake).  He said, "a plane crashed into the World Trade Center."  I said, "Blake, I am sure a plane did not crash into the World Trade Center."  He then explained, he was in guidance and everyone was listening to a radio.  I still dismissed it --- a plane crashed into the World Trade Center?  How is it even possible?  And if it was possible, it was just a plane crash...

That day the school was kept quiet.  We were told not to put the television on. We were told very little.  Most of us probably had no idea what was going ont until we got home.  Our kids leave for lunch, they came back with stories.  "Two planes...crashed...gone..."  Nonsense...they are just 15 year old kids - rumors, gossip, heresay.  I was 22 years old.

I was glued to the television, station after station the same scene over and over again.  I sobbed.  How could this happen?  How...

We spoke about it gingerly in school --- not knowing who had closer ties to the event.  I had my students write...I wrote.  I cried again.

Fast forward to Thursday, September 8th 2011.  I was at school looking for something in my desk and came across a notebook --- and in it- randomly was something I wrote on September 11th 2002.  How odd to find it this week --- how chilling it was to read it.

I still cry when seeing images of that day or hearing stories of that day -- because at 22 the world that I once knew was forever changed. And now at 32 reflecting on the 10 year mark of that day I wonder what else will happen in my lifetime that will forever change my view of the world.

My current students were 5-6 years old when this event happened.  I am struggling with deciding what would be a fitting tribute in the classroom.  More importantly, do they even care? So as I sit here this morning, thinking about what I will say and do on Monday...I am certain that I will never, ever forget.

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