Code of Honor

In September of 2001 the nation stood in shock as an act of war was unleashed in the middle of New York City. The firefighters and police officers who responded to the scene were met with impossible odds. To go into the smoldering, swaying buildings meant certain death but, on the other hand, to not enter the buildings went against their code of honor. These American heroes fought until their last breathe to save innocent lives that had been thrown into hell because of a terrorist attack. Soon after the attack a group came forward to claim responsibility: Osama bin Laden and the Taliban. The outrage of the American people could be felt, “Why” could be heard everywhere, and patriotism was the heady drug that America used to survive the attack on our home.

After the attack, President Bush declared war against those who had already declared war on the United States. There were some who did not believe in the war, but most still remembered the shock and fear felt on September 11, 2001. Support for the war has dwindled since then, but there are still some who remember that day. I still remember, as I stood watching as one plane and then a second plane smashed into the World Trade Towers.

I remember how I felt to stand helplessly in my home and watch as fellow Americans lost their lives because a terrorist wanted to fill our hearts with fear. I was only eleven at the time of the attack, but I still understood the fear of another attack and the anger of the first attack and the confusion of “why us? “ At my young age there was not much that I could do, but it was that year that my friend and I decided that we were going to join the United States military as soon as we were old enough.

This may seem like silly childhood promises and half conceived ideas of honor, but to us we believed that patriotism and service to our country would help heal the raw wounds that the attack had left. It has been almost eight years since the peace of that September morning was shattered, but I have continued to harbor those childhood beliefs of service and patriotism. Beliefs that helped me make the decision to join the United Stares Army after graduation.