9/11: The Day Everything Changed

 Hello friends!

How old were you on September 11, 2001? I was 19 years old.

I was a student at San Jacinto College in the Houston area, still playing drums in a rock band called Sindrome and trying to figure out what I was going to do with my life.

Then everything changed.

Like millions of Americans, I watched the images coming out of New York almost unable to comprehend what I was seeing. A plane had hit the World Trade Center. Then another. The Pentagon was hit. Another plane went down in Pennsylvania.

America was under attack.

Twenty-five years later, those words still hit me.

But what I remember isn’t only what was happening thousands of miles away. I remember what it felt like at home in Houston.

Could Houston Be Next?

We lived near one of the largest concentrations of refineries and chemical plants in the world.

I remember being scared that the Houston Ship Channel or the chemical plants around Pasadena could be attacked next.

That fear wasn’t completely irrational. Plants along the Ship Channel immediately tightened security⁠. Facilities in Pasadena, Deer Park, La Porte, and elsewhere went on heightened alert. Some sent nonessential workers home.

Nobody knew what was coming next.

I remember people rushing to gas stations. People were buying supplies. Rumors were everywhere. Everyone was trying to figure out whether another attack was coming and where it might happen.

It was wild.

For someone who was 19, it was also the first time I really understood how quickly the world you take for granted can change.

What I Remember Most

Nearly 3,000 innocent people were murdered⁠ that morning. But when I think back on September 11, I also remember what happened afterward.

Americans came together.

People lined up to give blood. First responders ran toward buildings while everyone else was running away. Churches filled. Flags appeared everywhere. Strangers helped strangers.

We prayed.

For a little while, many of the things that normally divided us seemed much smaller. That has stayed with me.

I wish it didn’t take tragedy for us to remember how much we have in common.

Twenty-Five Years Later

Today, I’m 44. I’m no longer that 19-year-old college kid playing drums around Houston.

I’m a husband. A father of three. An economist. And my children are growing up in a country where September 11 is something they learn about in history.

That realization gets me.

They didn’t experience the confusion of that morning. They didn’t watch the towers fall live on television wondering what was happening. They didn’t feel the uncertainty of wondering whether Houston, Washington, Los Angeles, or somewhere else might be next.

And I’m thankful for that. I pray they never experience anything like it. But I want them to understand it.

I want them to know about the 2,977 people who were killed⁠, the firefighters and police officers who climbed those stairs, the passengers of Flight 93 who fought back, and the Americans who answered the call to serve afterward.

This year, on the 25th anniversary, we once again honor those lives and sacrifices. I also want them to understand what we learned about freedom. It is precious. It can be threatened. And it is worth defending.

Never Forget

Twenty-five years is a long time. Yet I can still picture that 19-year-old version of myself trying to understand what was happening.

I remember the fear. But I also remember the courage. I remember the uncertainty. But I also remember the faith. I remember an America that was wounded but refused to be defeated.

So today I’ll do what Americans promised to do 25 years ago. I’ll remember.

I’ll pray for the families who never got their loved ones back. I’ll thank God for the first responders who ran toward danger. I’ll pray for those who have defended our country since. And I’ll pray that my children, and their children, never have to experience a day like September 11, 2001.

But I hope they always understand why we remember it. Freedom is precious. Life is precious. Our country is worth it.

Never forget. 🇺🇸

Until next time, God bless you, and let people prosper.

Vance Ginn, Ph.D.
President, Ginn Economic Consulting

https://vanceginn.substack.com/p/911-the-day-everything-changed