As a teacher there are three profound responsibilities that I find myself striving
for; to teach children about the past, to help prepare them for the future, and to enable
them to connect with their world as it is today. It was my hope that all three of these
would be achieved through writing and teaching my composition to my students. Just as
it is important to learn from those who have come before us, and it is imperative that we
prepare for the future, let us not miss the life that is happening all around us right now,
today. As we learn from the past and prepare for the future, let us not forget to help our
students connect with the life they are leading, the world they are experiencing, the
impact they are making.
One of the most profound and tragic events in modern day history is when four
commercial airplanes were hi-jacked by terrorists and flown into the Pentagon, the World
Trade Center towers, and a field in Pennsylvania. Directly following the tragic events of
September 11, 2002, I felt fear for our nation for the first time in my life. I felt as though
danger was not only possible, it was imminent. Having grown up in a generation that had
only heard of war times, I had enjoyed an abundance of peace and safety. For the first
time in my life, I was afraid for my country, afraid for my family, my friends, my
students.