9/11: We will never forget

It's so hard to believe it's been 10 years since the 9/11 attack. Like most people I remember exactly where I was when I heard the news. I was driving to work when the radio waves were interrupted with beeps and panicked announcements. Once I got to work, the entire firm was huddled around a t.v. in the conference room. We all had blank stares and exchanged no words. However, and maybe unlike most people, I'm not sure I grasped the gravity of the situation. At nearly 22 years old, I was still so "green" and didn't fully comprehend that this attack would forever change the history of the United States. Kathryn Schurch, my good friend and co-worker at the time, said between her tears that day, "America will never be the same again." She was a little older and much wiser than me. Filled with naive and unrealistic optimism, I couldn't understand why she would say that. Well, 10 years later, I understand exactly what she meant. I also have come to better understand the tenacity of the America spirit and that freedom is not free.

The Twin Towers: awesome structures and symbols of democracy, freedom and the American dream.

The attack: gruesome. cowardly. barbaric.

The Memorial: Proof that the American spirit will not be silenced and that we will never forget.