I am struck at how often my mind tends to wander when I think of September 11. It was a day that many of us will always remember. Most of us remember what we were doing and where we were when we heard the tragic news of the attack on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the plane crash in Pennsylvania. It’s interesting how events like that can burn such vivid memories into our brain, when often we have trouble remembering our meal the day before.

More intriguing is how there have been different iconic events for each generation. For those belonging to the generation of my now-deceased grandparents, December 7, 1941 will always be remembered. My parents and those of their generation remember November 22, 1963. I thought, for many years, the date my generation would remember was January 28, 1986 – the day the space shuttle Challenger exploded after takeoff. However, September 11, 2001 has become one of the biggest dates of tragedy in the history of the United States. It is important that we never forget – and never forget to tell future generations about what happened that day.

Looking back through the blog, I found a post that I wrote 2 years ago about how my day unfolded on that fateful morning. I was in my surgical rotation during my 3rd year of medical school. It’s an interesting read if you’ve never read it before. Check it out at this link.