A couple days ago, the kid comes home and asks me "What's 9-11?". She was still a month away from her 2nd birthday when the towers came down that fateful day, so she really had no clue. She said she'd heard something about it in school that day and was curious.
So I explained to her that every so often, something happens that has such an impact, years later people remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. Pearl Harbor was an example given by Jay. I also cited the JFK assassination, Neil Armstrong's historic first step and, my first big thing, the explosion of the space shuttle, Challenger.
I told her the story of where I was and what I did. I told her about watching the 2nd plane hit live on tv. I also told her about the crash into the Pentagon as well as the plane the passengers brought down in western PA. I even tried to put it in perspective for her near 10 year old mind just how many people died that day.
She seemed to have a great interest in it, so we agreed that today, we would watch a documentary about 9-11 together. I was actually proud of her in the fact that she really wanted to learn about it. Now, I told you that to tell you this...
I'm at the mall today on my way home from work to pay for my brother's cell phone bill. The place wasn't open yet, so I wandered the mall for a bit. I came across an FYE (a combination music/dvd/game store for those who don't know) and decided to go in and see if they had any 9-11 documentaries on dvd. I looked around myself, but came up empty. So I asked the woman behind the counter, a woman in her mid to late 20's if she knew if they had any.
As she's helping me search, I tell her about what brought on my search to begin with, saying how the kid heard about it in school and wanted to know more. So this woman looks at me, serious as can be, and says "do they still talk about that in school?".
I was dumbfounded! Is she kidding me? No, she had a complete look of utter indifference on her face, like it was something that was out of fashion being discussed. Quickly regaining my senses, I replied in the most sarcastic tone I can muster, which is pretty bad, and said "I know, right? You'd think they'd get over it by now. Just like that stupid Revolutionary War. When will they stop harping on something that happened hundreds of years ago?" She seemed clueless to my sarcasm and went about her search.
Needless to say, I left the store empty-handed and a little bit disappointed in human nature in general and my own countrymen specifically. It seems some people not only don't remember, but don't even have a fucking clue as to WHY they should remember. Our future is doomed.
So I explained to her that every so often, something happens that has such an impact, years later people remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. Pearl Harbor was an example given by Jay. I also cited the JFK assassination, Neil Armstrong's historic first step and, my first big thing, the explosion of the space shuttle, Challenger.
I told her the story of where I was and what I did. I told her about watching the 2nd plane hit live on tv. I also told her about the crash into the Pentagon as well as the plane the passengers brought down in western PA. I even tried to put it in perspective for her near 10 year old mind just how many people died that day.
She seemed to have a great interest in it, so we agreed that today, we would watch a documentary about 9-11 together. I was actually proud of her in the fact that she really wanted to learn about it. Now, I told you that to tell you this...
I'm at the mall today on my way home from work to pay for my brother's cell phone bill. The place wasn't open yet, so I wandered the mall for a bit. I came across an FYE (a combination music/dvd/game store for those who don't know) and decided to go in and see if they had any 9-11 documentaries on dvd. I looked around myself, but came up empty. So I asked the woman behind the counter, a woman in her mid to late 20's if she knew if they had any.
As she's helping me search, I tell her about what brought on my search to begin with, saying how the kid heard about it in school and wanted to know more. So this woman looks at me, serious as can be, and says "do they still talk about that in school?".
I was dumbfounded! Is she kidding me? No, she had a complete look of utter indifference on her face, like it was something that was out of fashion being discussed. Quickly regaining my senses, I replied in the most sarcastic tone I can muster, which is pretty bad, and said "I know, right? You'd think they'd get over it by now. Just like that stupid Revolutionary War. When will they stop harping on something that happened hundreds of years ago?" She seemed clueless to my sarcasm and went about her search.
Needless to say, I left the store empty-handed and a little bit disappointed in human nature in general and my own countrymen specifically. It seems some people not only don't remember, but don't even have a fucking clue as to WHY they should remember. Our future is doomed.
