There are days in life that we remember vividly, we remember everything that happened that day, what we were thinking, saying and doing. Working with older Americans I’ve learned that these days include the day you get married, the day your first child is born and acts of war. They tell me stories about these days all the time. They tell me about their weddings and about how it felt to hold their first child in their hands. They tell me wild stories about the Attack on Pearl Harbor, how they heard, what they were doing and how it changed their life. I can’t say that I know what many of those days feel like, except for when there is an act of war.

Today marks the 12th anniversary of the attacks of 9/11. It is a day I will remember until I get Dementia. I remember listening to 929. KZZU in Spokane, Dave and Ken the breakfast boys as I was getting ready for school that morning. On the ride to school my brothers and I were transfixed listening to every detail that came across the airwaves. When we arrived at school we watched TV shocked at the wreckage caused by the towers falling.

The 11th was the day that our school had chosen to go to the Spokane County Fair, it usually was one of the most exciting days of the year, but all I did that day was sit in the KXLY booth and watch the news. In the 9th grade, radical Islamic groups didn’t mean anything to me, 9/11 blasted that wall down.  9/11 changed my views of the world; it took away my naivety about how other countries felt about our country. It changed my life short term as mission trips that I wanted to go on were canceled and were other over seas trips. To this day I think back every year about it, I think about all the innocent people who died that day and all the troops that have died since fighting these groups that brought terror to our country. My prayers go out to those who were affected in this tragedy and to those who still are putting their lives on the line in our countries. Never Forget!