Eight years

I was on the bus heading to campus when it happened. I walked into the classroom amid a flurry of hushed whispers. "Did you hear?" "It's so horrible." "I just can't believe it." Back then I was lucky to get up in time to grab a granola bar before rushing out the door. I certainly didn't have time to watch the news.

At first I thought it was the typical rumor mill and didn't want to ask about it. But then I noticed it wasn't just one group of people. Everyone was talking about it. I couldn't stand it anymore, so I asked the girl sitting next to me. She said a plane it a building in New York City. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a kid sprinting down the hallway from the small library in the journalism building.

"Another one! Another one just hit the second tower." The two tvs in the library were always on CNN and MSNBC. Hey, it was the journalism building. We were news junkies when we weren't half asleep.

Our professor arrived late. We discussed what had happened for awhile, but then she ended up turning on the tv for us. Afterall, what better way to learn about crisis communication than to watch it unfold before your eyes.

Today I was at our local school district's elementary school. The local fire and police departments were there along with the Air Gaurd in honor of Patriot's Day. The students shuffled between stations learning about how each department helped that day eight years ago. And how they continue to help our community every day.

The bizarre thing is... these kids were barely old enough to remember it. Eight years ago they ranged in ages from one to five years old. What they know of 9-11 is probably the footage and photos they've seen since then.

God bless the patriots of our nation today and always.