Where were you?

My pastor asked a few people at church to read their story of "where were you?" on 9/11. I was one of the "chosen," so I thought I would post my story in rememberance of this tragic day in our country's history.

I was in college at the time at Florida State University, living in my sorority house. I remember walking down the stairs to get breakfast and hearing silence. In a house with almost 100 girls living there, this was extremely unusual. I went into the dining room, and they had pulled our big screen tv into the dining room. I sat down at one of the tables in complete shock as I read the words scrolling across the screen. New York City was under attack. Our country was being targeted. I had two thoughts at that moment - Is this real? And I hope my parents didn't get on the plane this morning.

My mom and dad were scheduled to fly out to Chicago that morning. They didn't fly out because their flight got canceled as did most others that day, but I didn't know that at the time. I knew Chicago could have been a target as a major US city, and my first action was to call them to make sure they weren't going. No one knew the severity of the attack at first, so my dad was still planning on flying out. I remember begging them not to go. Just stay grounded for the time being. My top priority was my family.

As the day wore on I watched the second tower get hit, and heard about all the subsequent attacks to the Pentagon and so on. Classes were canceled throughout campus, and we were all stuck in front of the tv. Not much talking was going on. Everyone was engrossed in their own thoughts.

I remember it being a day of "reality." I lived in a pretty good, non-realistic bubble at the time. I had the freedom of living "on my own," but still had someone paying my bills, making my meals, and so on. It was the best of both worlds, as some would say. On September 11th, I definitely saw that my bubble was just that. Reality was what was going on out there. I knew to count my blessings and pray for all those who lost loved ones on that momentous day. I took time out to pray for all those who didn’t know the Lord. I prayed this would bring them to Him. He is the only way to find comfort in times of turmoil. That was my reality check, and something I hope to never forget.