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Sept.
11 Remains a Reminder of Heroism |
Posted:
9.15.06
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Andrew LaCombe, a 16-year-old reporter with 8-18 Media, was in
6th grade on Sept. 11, 2001, when a terrorist attack destroyed
the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and
damaged the Pentagon in Arlington, Va.
Andrew remembers the attacks and reflects on the indelible images
and lingering impacts of that day.
Click
here to listen to this segment in MP3 format.
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This month our country commemorates the five-year anniversary
of the day our lives were forever changed.
 I
was in my 6th grade industrial technology class when I first learned
of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Our principal's announcement during 7th hour was vague and left
many questions in my mind about what was really happening. When
I got home and turned on the news I couldn't believe what I was
seeing.
My country, the most powerful in the world, was being attacked
on its own ground. I didn’t know why we were a target; there
hadn't been any warning that this was coming.
I knew about wars from years past, but I didn't realize that
there was so much conflict in today’s world -- and that it
could hit here at home.
In the months after the attacks, I was so much more aware of
the violence and tension happening in the world. I knew that our
country was headed to war in Afghanistan to find the terrorists,
and to keep our world safe from future attacks. But I still wondered
if it would happen again.
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Memories
of 9/11 |
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Five years later, I haven't forgotten about the attacks of 9/11
and the lives lost on that day. The images of the second plane
hitting the tower, the people jumping from the buildings, and
the collapse of the towers are imprinted permanently in my mind.
But what I remember most are the images and stories of heroes.
The passengers aboard United 93, which went down in a rural Pennsylvania
field, stood up to the hijackers and attempted to take back the
plane. Their efforts probably saved hundreds, if not thousands,
of lives in the U.S. Capitol Building, where experts say the flight
was headed.
As people fled the World Trade Center towers in New York City,
hundreds of rescue workers were running back into the buildings.
I can't even imagine the courage it took for the rescuers to go
into the burning towers, when they knew that their own lives were
in extreme danger.
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Rebuilding
and memorializing |
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Recently, the stories of the United 93 passengers and World Trade
Center rescue workers were depicted in movies. Hollywood has come
under scrutiny for United 93 and World Trade Center, but I only
saw a positive side to the films. Through the stories of passengers
and rescue workers, these movies portrayed the enormous heroism
that came out of the horrific day.
 Five
years after the attacks, the tons of rubble and debris from Ground
Zero are cleared. The New York City skyline is changed, but by
2012, the new Freedom Tower will stand on the former World Trade
Center site. It not only will be the tallest building in the United
States, but also will commemorate the lives lost on Sept. 11.
The Freedom Tower can never replace the twin towers, and most
importantly, the lives lost on 9/11. Instead, the new tower will
stand tall as a visible reminder to my generation, those children
who at first couldn't understand what was happening to their country.
It will keep those images of immense heroism forever etched in
our minds.
--
Andrew LaCombe,
16, is a junior at Marquette High School in Marquette, Mich.,
in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Andrew visited Ground Zero in 2004
and is considering a career in journalism.
What do you think of Hollywood's depiction of the Sept.
11 attacks? Do you think the buildings at the World Trade Center
site and other memorials at attack sites are appropriate? Let
us know what you think. E-mail
us!
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Joplin was able to rise from the ashes because of help from everyone. And I am eternally grateful to anyone who made that possible.
