September 11, 2001, was a cloudless day. I don’t know this firsthand, as I was only 3 and on the cusp of preschool. I had no inkling of the day being any different. I know this because my mom tells me
By Chloe Berger
September 11, 2001, was a cloudless day. I don’t know this firsthand, as I was only 3 and on the cusp of preschool. I had no inkling of the day being any different. I know this because my mom tells me every anniversary of 9/11. She tells me what the day was like, and I can trace the memory from the stories she planted in me. She gave me word-for-word a story that I keep with me every 9/11.
I noticed that this year Princeton Day School commemorated 9/11 less than it did previously. On Sept. 9, the Upper School had a moment of silence during an announcements gathering. Nothing was said on the actual day. Last year we had an assembly on 9/11, and a teacher shared her story from that day.
When does something still relevant fade into the Times New Roman of a textbook? When does the day pass disregarded? There are students and faculty alike in the town, as well as in the PDS community, who suffered a drastic loss on 9/11. What is it saying to these people when we don’t commemorate their loss? As some people begin to think of 9/11 as part of history, those directly affected by this tragedy may not get the support they deserve.
Although media coverage is vital, oral communication is equally important. Personal stories stick to our memory like gum on a subway rail. The effect of parents neglecting to explain to their children what happened to the Twin Towers leads those children to not have any story to grab onto and truly understand the depth of 9/11.
As Dr. Karen Latham, a PDS English teacher, said, “I think it’s really important to tell stories about the day itself or about people they knew. When you turn something as overwhelming and horrible as that event into a narrative, it personalizes it. If you put it in a form people can understand, it’s a way of trying to make sense of it.”
The fact that PDS has stopped taking time to recognize the attack on 9/11 may mean that we as a community are losing the ability to commemorate. I need those school meetings of shared stories to create an image of what really occurred. Otherwise, when I become an adult, and the future of the nation is in my generation’s hands, I won’t be able to share anything of importance on 9/11.
A first grade teacher in Princeton notes, “When I started teaching here nine years ago, on 9/11 usually someone would say, ‘that’s the day the planes went into the tower.’ Then I would read a picture book about it called ‘Fireboat’ and we would talk about it. Now, nobody says anything, and I don’t do anything because I don’t think first graders should be introduced to it at school. But as time passes, it’s less of our shared history.”
These children don’t have any memories of 9/11 or fragments of other people’s memories to create an idea of what happened. If they don’t hear these memories, then they can’t create their own. When they grow older, 9/11 will no longer be considered annually. Sept. 11 will no longer hold the same significance.
History teacher Eamon Downey, who was at PDS on 9/11, says, “The following year [after 9/11] we all congregated outside. We had a moment of silence and some speakers. We did that for many years. It was only a few years ago that we stopped having that gathering on 9/11. I think that’s what happens with these things. I don’t think they or I will ever forget. I can think of other kind of events, for which people ask each other where you were when this happened. I think memory doesn’t fade, but we learn how to move on at some point.”
The lack of memorialization of 9/11 is similar to Pearl Harbor. I don’t know what year, month, or day it even happened. I fear that over time, 9/11 will join Pearl Harbor in its neglected state. I think an event so shockingly and despairingly impactful should not be pushed off the calendar of remembrance. It is my job, PDS’ job, and everyone’s job, to make sure that 9/11 does not become just Sept. 11.
Chloe Berger is a sophomore at Princeton Day School.