Today in Social Studies Social Studies, I start crying, moved to tears by the goodness of people’s heart. We were watching a video on boat-lifting and the conscience of people when facing danger during the 9/11 attack.

If you haven’t heard of the 9/11 attack, it was a terrorist attack on September 11th, 2001, when hijackers took over planes and flew them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. It was a horrible attack, and some of my teachers were in New York, while many others watched helplessly on the TV live news, seeing the building crash down and smoke from the explosion spreading all over Manhattan. The bridges, subways, and all sort of transportation closed down, and people covered in smoke were running towards the harbor, their only way out of the city.

What moved me to tears was the fact that when one ship captain called for help, in just a few minutes, there were hundreds and thousands of boats driving towards the harbor of Manhattan, forcing their ships and lives into the unknown darkness to save the innocent people. Boats of all different kinds, size, and type swarmed the harbor, and even faced with death itself, New Yorkers lined up and one by one, got onto the available ships. The picture with the four men carrying an old lady was so emotional to me, because it made me realize that when faced with danger, you are not alone.

After going home, I learned from my parents that in the Twin Towers, there were many businesses on each floor, and when the plane crashed into both towers, the faculty did not push or run towards the exit, but lined up and faced the future courageously. I would also like to honor the firefighters, as they all swarmed into the building to help people, eventually being crushed as the building collapsed. The feelings I am going through are very complicated, and no words can describe my awe and respect for the firefighters.

What bothered me the most was how the terrorists chose to hijack passenger planes and fly them into buildings where they knew were the work place for many people. Those innocent people have family, friends, and everyone else who will miss them terribly. It is just so wrong to do such things to innocent people who aren’t even involved in the government and politics that you might disagree with!

This April, we (the 7th Grade) are going on a school trip to New York and we are going to go to the Ground Zero, the remaining of the Pentagon and the Twin Towers, where there are all the deceased names written around the two squares that the Twin Towers used to be. I will bow my head and mourn for all the people who have died that day or the ones who have died of injury. At the same time, I would also be thankful for all the people that had saved the many victims of the attack, and be grateful that my family, friends, teachers, and even strangers are all behind my back to support me. And I will do the same thing back.