The strongest country and only super power in the world was attacked by terrorists. Terrorists that we had actually supported during the Cold War against the Soviet Union. It seemed that  our own power was our downfall.

Some of the most haunting images from Sept. 11, 2001, include the Twin Towers crumbling on national television, people jumping out of the windows of the towers, preferring to fall to their deaths then burn alive in the wreckage, and dust billowing through the streets of New York City as people ran to escape.

There were also images of the Pentagon with the tail a downed airplane sticking out of the side, the freeway next to it in ruins, and workers being carried out on what ever stretcher could be created at the time because the ambulances couldn’t reach the building.

And the worst was the next day, when a plane was found crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. Flight 93 has captured the true American spirit when it was learned the passengers fought against their attackers and managed to keep the plane from crashing into Washington, D.C.

These images have been replayed over the years, and will be everywhere around us this weekend in honor of one of America’s most tragic events.

Everyone can remember the paranoia, the anti-Islamic feelings, and loss of hope children get when their safety blanket is removed forever. The effects of the attack are still felt today with tightened airport security, and the controversy over building a Mosque near Ground Zero.

We all were angry, and those families who lost loved one were the angriest. Even at age seven, I was angry. Angry at these people who hurt innocent people in our own country, angry they could get away with this, angry the police hadn’t put the bad guys away yet. And the bad guys walking away with no real punishment was what hurt me the most.

Sept. 11 was the day when a generation had to learn that sometimes, the bad guys can’t be found, or locked away, or put in jail. And my generation got to live with the re-awakening paranoia of the Cold War all over again. But this time, our friends and neighbors were under attack because of religious beliefs.

The hardest part for me was learning who the true bad guys were. I knew the people who flew airplanes into buildings and killed thousands of people were bad, but was the Muslim family living down the block bad, too? That question was answered so many different ways in the following years, and my generation had to make their own decisions about who was dangerous and who was not.

And we weren’t even teenagers yet.

What many students at Cal High don’t realize is that there is a new generation which has never seen the Twin Towers, except in history class. I remember reading my history book during junior year and being surprised when I reached the section on the 9/11 attacks.

Is it really history now? It seems like it happened just yesterday. But my youngest cousin, who is now entering kindergarden, had never seen the Twin Towers outside of movies and history books. She has never seen them on MTV in the morning, never seen them shown like we in California display the Golden Gate Bridge to let people know where they are. She’s never had that opportunity, and while most of us have, who can honestly remember it now, after 10 years?

I can still remember 9/11 vivdly. The planes crashed into the Twin Towers when I was at school, and I learned what happened while playing in a soccer game at practice in the afternoon, and the parents were worried. This was after a whole day of teachers at elementary school being too cheerful, too happy, acting like nothing was wrong. Being seven at the time, I had no idea why everything that day ended earlier than usual.

It was once I was taken home that I learned what had happened. I was scared to go out and play soccer the next week, being convinced a plane was going to crash into the field in which I was playing.

But now we have a new generation that doesn’t have the fear, the paranoia, the blatant hatred in some cases which came from this attack. And it is our duty to this generation to look beyond this attack, and while we will never forget, maybe we can start to forgive.

After all, how can you blame an entire nation or religion for the actions of several insane individuals? Is it really the Afghan children’s fault, the children being oppressed by the same monsters who hurt us?

So yes, we’re still hurt and still recovering. And nothing that I say will ever give comfort to the families who lost loved ones in the 9/11 attacks. Sept. 11, in any year, is a day of remembrance, for the security we lost, for the people who died needlessly, and for the heroes who saved lives.

Whether they be fireman, policemen, civilian’s in the streets running the wounded to the ambulances, or the civilian’s who stopped the third attack, we salute them.

So raise the flags at half mast on Sunday. And at 8:56 in the morning, make sure you stop and realize how far we’ve come from the years ago, and how much was lost.

Never forget what happened, even as we move forward.