The events of September 11 as they were happening

I’m not one to write letters to the Lawrentian, so pardon my errors and grammar.
I sit here in an apartment in Georgetown, Washington D.C., still in shock of today’s events. I awoke at 10:00 a.m. to my radio alarm alerting me of things terribly wrong in D.C. and New York, a glimpse of what was to come.
Shock, true fear (something I’ve not felt so strongly before), and anger filled my head and heart. News reports not sure if the attacks in D.C. (which happened less then 5 miles from my apartment) were over, kept my friend and I (recent Alumni) fixed to the television. As the day continued, and I received e-mails from friends and family across the country, I fully understood how horrible this day had become.
I’m not sure why I’m writing this, I guess to get off my chest how I’m feeling. The country changed today, in a way we are still trying to comprehend. We return to Lawrence in less then a week, and freshmen start a four-year experience which they will not forget. Yet constant reminders of today’s attack will shadow their first–and my last year at Lawrence.
Transportation security will be tighter then ever before, and fears across the country will be high.
Yet, as I’ve seen from friends, family, and even strangers across D.C., life will go on. Courage, tolerance, and prayer will pull us through this.
Campuses across the country are rallying behind the men and women who are risking their lives saving the people who have been directly hurt by this attack…and so should Lawrence. We must reply to calls for assistance.
Soon fingers will be pointed and investigations will be started. Yet we need to remember to have tolerance, and stress equality in the weeks to come. You may be black, white, gay, straight, Catholic, or Protestant, but the differences we may have MUST be placed aside. How can we fight attacks from abroad if we are unable to unite at home? If nothing else, we must help in any way we can, and having tolerance can go along way.
I hope and pray for the safety of the United States.
Out of the ashes of these attacks must come a strong and united country.Nathan Heffel