AmericanTragedy

This day has obviously been beyond words.

I remember waking up this morning, getting ready for the day like any other. It was to be a normal school day, and a day full of unavoidable schoolwork.

I remember packing up my backpack, getting ready to leave my room, ready to tackle the challenges of the day ahead.

And then I remember seeing a message on my computer that would change my perspective on the entire day. It simply said, "turn on channel 3 (abc), and say a prayer".

I was scared...I was shaking, as my finger reluctantly pushed the power button on my t.v. and quickly changed to the channel. It's hard to remember exactly what ran through my mind when I saw the screen. My heart sank...I actually felt as if something was weighing it down. My eyes were watering, and beyond the teary eyes, I saw icons of America that were no more. Today, the twin towers no longer stand, the explosions played over and over in televisions across America. Many innocent lives taken in commercial planes to create the destruction. So much sacrifice. The images of people running from the debris, the sights of people in panic, doctors and nurses running to aid the injured. A shower of light-colored debris covering the area like a giant sandstorm. People with face masks, struggling to breathe, coughing, covering their heads with coats to shield their faces. It's a tragedy said to equal that of Pearl Harbor. I have never felt such a feeling of anger and despair as I had felt this morning, and all day. It makes me wonder why things like this have to happen, why this has to happen to innocent people, and why someone had the nerve to be the motive behind such a heartless scheme. I have never cried so much for those that I have never known, I have never felt such sorrow for our nation's loss. All of this happened in such a flash, everything just running through my mind, triggering emotions. I said a prayer aloud as I reluctantly left for class -- mind in a blur, tears in my eyes.

It took me much longer to get back to my room after class than I planned. Riding under the MSC breezeway, I saw a circle of people sitting on the ground, holding hands. Praying. I quickly parked my bike and joined the circle, closed my eyes, and began to pray for our nation. For our leaders, for those who lost family members, for those who were victims, and even those who had spearheaded the attack -- for they are the ones most in need of God's mercy. In a time of desperate need, such as this, prayer with other Aggies made me feel a little more at peace. The group that was assembled there was there for the sole purpose of making sure that things would turn out okay, for the sole reason that we had faith in God and trust in His will. Faith is the greatest thing a person can have in a situation like this.

I remember riding my bike back to my dorm as fast as I could so that I could get back and see what developments had come about since I had left. Although countless notes of math equations laid before me, waiting to be looked over, I could just not harness my attention long enough to study them. At the time when the nation is in such a panic, a simple math problem just doesn't seem to have the highest priority. The events of the day replayed, the screams, the shouts.....the innocent lives....the agony. It's hard not to keep myself from crying when I see the nation in such pain, and I realize that I am crying along with those that have felt the suffering today.

May God bless each and every one of us. This day has changed my outlook on life; it makes me realize that we are all vulnerable to attack, both in a literal and figurative sense. We must be wary of how precious life is -- how precious this life that God gave us is. How just one decision can affect so many lives. It happened so unexpectedly, without warning. And it's now a day that's going down in history.

Faith, spirit and pride are things that are not easily taken away from someone. The spirit and pride of this nation will not be diminished, nor should our faith in the Lord above falter at this time, when it should, in fact, be at its strongest.

"When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
2 Chronicles 7:13-14

May the Peace of the Lord be with you,

Gracie Arenas,
Fightin' Texas Aggie Class of 2004