september 11

today i love my compassion for others.
i had a hard time thinking of something to write for tonight, but started the process by opening blogger and typing the date.
the date.
on this day every year for the past 11 it's hard to not remember. clear as day, i can recall where i was, who i was with, what i felt, on september the 11th of 2001. i was a senior in college. i was in my first class of the day, an accounting class, tax something-or-other. a student who was in the computer lab next door before class came in and announced a plane had hit the world trade center. what? the teacher arrived and turned on the tv in the classroom. everyones stomach dropped as we realized a second plane had hit the second tower. two towers in flames against the crystal clear blue sky. two towers full of people, of loved ones, of mothers and fathers and daughters and sons. the horrific realization that it was a deliberate attack was too much to comprehend at the time. we were let go, to return to the dorms, classes cancelled the rest of the day. that day and night, i huddled with my roommates and friends in our dorm room glued to the television.
the pain i felt for those people was all too real. is still all to real every time i am reminded of all those senseless losses. i still cry when reading stories, or watching tv specials about it. all those first responders, heroes, who lost their lives trying to selflessly save others. i will never ever forget. it is impossible.
when i typed this date in to the title of the post, i realized the compassion i have for others. it's what makes me a good listener, a good boss. it's what made me join the hot line and be an ra and oa in college. it's my ability to put myself in their place and genuinely empathize with them. it also makes me sensitive sometimes, but that's ok. i wouldn't want to go through this life unfeeling and cold. i would rather be the compassionate, understanding, crying person that i am. i love that.