Student Writing

9/11: How It Affected Us

By Kaitlyn Golden

All throughout the United States of America, fear controlled the population. In the five boroughs of New York City, especially. Manhattan, Staten Island, Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens. I was able to interview witnesses on their accounts of 9/11. The recently wed couple of Debra and Mike Golden were just starting the morning in their Staten Island apartment. Debra just woke up and got dressed, while Mike was in the kitchen, studying for his Microsoft exam the next day (Golden 2019). Wanting to relax just for a few minutes, Debra made Starbucks coffee, while Mike was getting the TiVo started (Golden 2019). As they sat down, hot decaf coffee in hand, they were ready to watch Debra’s favorite show at the time, Martha Stewart, but the Fox Morning News was on when the TV turned on (Golden 2019). A huge headline ran across the screen: Suspected Aircraft hits South Tower World Trade Center. Debra thought it was just one of Mike’s movies for a split second, until she saw the small red box in the corner, with bolded white font that reads: Live (Golden 2019). Mike and Debra just thought it was a small aircraft that hit the edge. Then, suddenly, a flash of light struck the other tower and caused huge a explosion (Golden 2019). The TiVo was the newest TV where viewers could rewind or fast forward. Mike reached for the remote and rewound the TV to see a jet crash right into the tower, and a huge explosion occurred (Golden 2019). They both knew instantly that this was a terrorist attack. Their stomachs dropped in an instance, but the were numb with emotion that they didn’t move. The world was a safe, happy place before, and now they felt vulnerable. This country was peaceful, but now the realization that anyone could hurt us was extremely real. Debra went to work that day, since most of her coworkers could not come in, because the bridges were closed for emergency response could get to the towers (Golden 2019). Mike was home studying, when Debra’s sister called to inform Mike about the Pentagon attack. A rush of fear and confusion boiled inside, worrying and yearning for more information (Golden 2019). When Debra drove into their small driveway, back from work, Mike was waiting for her. The smell of burned wires and smoke flooded the area. When Debra got out of the car, she pointed to the black sky, full of soot and ashes. Debra asked Mike what was that awful cloud. “It is the towers”, Mike said calmly. They both agreed it was the cloud of death (Golden 2019). To this day, Debra still gets very panicky when she hears a plane. Her heart will race and she will question what is a plane doing over the area (Golden 2019). All of New York came together as one, and volunteers all over the world came to help clean up, and carry the hope of survivors. A month and a half later, Mike went to go see an Elton John concert with his friend, Anthony. They both knew that they had to use public transportation, since parking would be impossible. While the bus was in Manhattan, they passed one piece of the building, with rubble all around it, like a war zone. A spotlight was shining on it, like an angel out of heaven, giving some sign of hope. Mike still remembers this in-life image of the World Trade Center. They both knew around five people that died in the attacks. Not only did 9/11 affect the witnesses living in New York, but also the rest of the world.