Where I was on 9/11

I had just moved to Florida from Puerto Rico. It was my first time living in the continental US. Dad had bought the house in Florida a year earlier and it still had that new house smell. I made the downstairs den into my bedroom, which was awesome because it was like my own little apartment - secluded from the rest of the house.

I was at that half asleep / half awake phase of waking up. You know, where you’re still sleeping but you’re fully aware of all the sounds around you. I didn’t wanna get up. Then, suddenly, I start hearing this commotion coming from upstairs. My brother and dad are yelling about something. I hear loud footsteps quickly coming down the stairs and getting closer to my door. They both loudly knock on my door and I jump out of bed. “Qué pasó?” I say. I don’t remember who said it first or if they both said it at the same time: “A plane hit one of the Twin Towers!”

I run upstairs to watch the news in my dad’s bedroom. I watch in disbelief as the North Tower burns. “What a terrible accident,” I think to myself. And before I can take it all in, a second plane hits the South Tower. WTF. “This is deliberate!” I yell. And then it became clear, we were under attack.

I’ll remember that morning for the rest of my life.

Where were you on 9/11?