9/11: One day, four planes, 19 militants, 3,000 deaths.

On Sept. 11, 2001, 19 terrorists hijacked four planes in an attack that rattled the entire nation.  At 8:46 a.m., 13 years ago on this very date, American Airlines Flight 11 struck the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. Seventeen minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175 struck the south tower. Thirty-four minutes after this, American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon Building. At 10:03 a.m., the final plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

In an attack that lasted merely one hour and 17 minutes, 3,000 human lives were lost.

We call today Patriots Day. We call it a day of remembrance, of silence, of commemoration.

Taking all this into consideration, I sat down about two weeks ago ready to whip out a passionate column about how this date has left a profound impact on my life. I stared at my blank word document for an hour, then two. I thought maybe I was just suffering from writers block. I texted a friend expecting a vibrant answer to clear up my angle; his response shocked me. After thinking for a while, he said 9/11 did not leave an impact on his life, at least not a personal one.

At first, I thought that this answer was totally absurd. How can such a catastrophe not leave its scar?

But then I thought about it and mulled the idea around in my head. My fellow seniors and I were around four to five years old at the time. To say that the attacks changed our lives or our perspectives, was, in fact, a ridiculous answer. As it happens, I highly doubt we have any recollection of a pre-9/11 world.

So, in effect, we can’t pinpoint a marked significance of this date in our personal lives. We did not suddenly transition into a world of panic or fear in the years following the attack, we grew up in it. That is the world we remember, we know no other.

Throughout the years, the topic of the attacks has invariably resurfaced in conversations with my parents, my teachers, and just adults I know. A commonality in all of these conversations is the line, “I will never forget what I was doing.” These adults remember what they were doing, who they were with and what was happening as the planes crashed and the towers fell. They can relive the tragedy.

This got me thinking: what do we remember in our moment of silence? When we all stand up and Mr. Williams announces a moment of silence on the PA, what do we recall? The fact of the matter is that we can’t possibly have an emotional connection to an event we hardly remember. To make matters worse, in every social studies class I’ve taken, my teachers have skimmed past modern history. So, we barely obtain any solid information of this national calamity through school at least.

The solution to our perils simply lies in more knowledge. Our apathy is merely a product of ignorance. I urge you all to seize the day and awaken your inner patriot. Watch videos, read articles and gain perspective. Learn something   to remember as you stand before the flag and revere this national tragedy today.