Remembering 9/11

I can't believe it's been five years since the Twin Towers fell. I still remember where I was when I first heard about it. I was getting ready for school (at that time, it was my first semester at college), when I walk into the living room, I noticed that the News was showing the twin towers and the pentagon side by side. All I could think was, "What happened?" At first I thought only one tower got hit, but then when I saw footage of the second plane hitting the second tower, I knew that it was no accident. I was completely shocked. I skipped my English class because my Dad didn't want us to go to school and I wasn't sure what to think. Although I ended up going to my Math class anyways because I had a test that day. To this day, I regret not going to english class because everybody had written a paper about how they felt that morning. I know I could have wrote one myself, but never got around to it. I guess now this post will become a record of how I felt that day.
The rest of the day, I kept watching the news still shocked with all that was happening. I began to wonder if things would ever return to normal again, but I knew that things had changed. After that day, I clearly remember seeing a lot more American flags going up. Before 9/11/01, whenever my dad wanted to buy flags, he would have to ask the sales clerks where they were and they would usually be in the back of the store. That all changed after 9/11 because everywhere I went, there were flags, I mean all kinds of flags, flags for your porch, flags for your car, flag t-shirts, and even flag halloween costumes. I think at that time, we as Americans had realized how much we took our country for granted.
I still remember how courageous President Bush looked standing on top of the rubble with the bullhorn. At that time I actually believed that he was really doing something and I thought "Wow! he's going to be a two term President!" Of course this was a time when I blindly followed Bush, until he came up with the Patriot Act and then went into war in Iraq, then my eyes were opened and I realized I have a mind of my own. OK, that's another story, as I was saying...
I clearly remember the tribute concert for New York City. It wasn't just because that concert was what made me a Who fan, but the fact that it was a concert for the real heroes, the firefighters and police officers.
It has been five years since then, and there are still questions that we still don't have the answers to such as "Have things returned to normal?", "Are we safer?", and "Will Bin Laden ever be found?" The airport security has gotten much tighter, unfortunately it's always at the last minute. Is there any way we can track down the terrorists without sacrificing our civil liberties?
No matter how much we prepare or learn from our past mistakes, there will always be tragic events, but we are strong and we can get back on our feet and carry on with our lives, or help other people do so.