Where were you on Sept. 11?

It was another day of paradise in the land of the free. SHSU students were tucked nicely in bed. Some were in the comfort of an air-condition classroom or eating a nutritious bowl of Wheaties.The typical day of comfort and freedom was Sept. 11, 2001. People of all generations were struck with horror. The youth of the United States had never before witnessed the magnitude of terrorism displayed that day. It changed young Americans. It changed them for the worse; it changed them for the better.American life definitely changed that day.Sept. 11 is the birthday of Chris Ringer, an SHSU senior accounting/finance major. Ringer woke to the news of the Sept. 11 events. “My cousin woke me up to tell me, and I thought it was a joke,” said Ringer. He skipped class that Tuesday and Wednesday. Ringer’s plans for his birthday were cancelled.Students were in a state of disbelief. Cell phones were ringing with the voice of worried parents on the other end. Family and friends seemed to love each other more than they did the hour before.Melissa Campbell, a SHSU senior English major, was in Dr. Hill’s English 267 class. “There was a radio in the classroom, so we listened to it. Then class went on as normal,” said Campbell. “After class, I went to Zack’s to watch it on television.””My initial reaction was shock and disbelief,” said Campbell.Campbell, like Jennie Bonner, a senior psychology major, spent the rest of the day watching CNN.”I was emotionally traumatized,” said Bonner. “I watched TV for the next three weeks.””I wanted to keep up with everything. I wanted to keep connected with the people that lost. I felt that the TV was the only way to empathize with them,” said Bonner.For most SHSU students, 1,500 miles physically separated the tragedy from themselves. This was not the case for Keith Glanz, a junior radio/television major.”I was in New York. My step mom works in the city,” said Glanz. “I was more or less worried about my family and my friends.”Prior to 2001, Sept. 11 was an exam day. It was a walk in the park or a trip to the arcade.Now it is a day most SHSU students remember as their first stroke with terrorism. Most SHSU students will always remember what they were doing at the time. Few will forget and some will hesitate to recall.