Eating my frozen eggo waffles with maple syrup, I sat dressed in my school uniform. Navy blue slacks, a white polo, and some goofy hair composed with goopy gel; it was all planned to be a normal day in the 7th grade. But it wasn’t, not at all. 

The chubby late bloomer that I was turned on the small tv that even had antennas. The news was the only thing on at 6am PST. BREAKING NEWS: One of the twin towers has been hit! 

My mom watched with me, as my dad was still getting ready for work. Our eyes were glued to the tv in awe. My mom walked down the hall to tell my dad the news. I sat there by myself and suddenly watched another plane ram into the second tower. Gosh, it seems like yesterday. 15 years to this day!

My dad took me to school and all day we watched the events unfold at school. This was unprecedented, we never did this. This was something else. Sitting here now, I think this day must have been similar to our grandparents hearing about Pearl Harbor or our parents watching Neil on the Moon or the JFK Assassination. All historical events aside, this was for us millenienials our day of rememberance. 

I remember the day, week, and months after. Watching and following the unfolding of the story. Now today, 15 years later we remember the lives, families, and who we are. I remember my childhood neighbor Silva who died in Iraq in 2002. I remember the 90’s prior to 2001 when things seemed less crazy in America.
I’m thankful for our freedom and thankful to friends who serve to protect our freedom. I had a conversation with Pablo from Argentina this past weekend; we talked about the differences between our two countries. We agreed that there is no other country where you can walk as freely around as you please than America. 
Let us take a moment to be grateful for the opportunity to walk and talk freely. Let us pray for peace and understanding between like Americans. And let us warmly embrace our family, friends, and communities as we remember how precious life is.