It was a really tragic day today. Planes crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. I was in zero-hour English, when another teacher walked in and told us to turn on the tv. I couldn't make out what I was looking at at first. When I realized, I was filled with fear and confusion. I couldn't believe that such American landmarks could have this happen to them, and 3 times too! I was in a state of shock for the entire school day. I couldn't think straight, I wasn't hungry at lunch, and I kept drifting off the lines when I was writing. I felt like there were a million thoughts running through my mind at the time, but I couldn't grasp a single one.

We watched tv in every class before lunch, and it was the most painful for me when I saw the second building of the trade center falling apart, live. I came really close to crying at that moment, and I got all teary eyed at different times throughout the day. You just never think that this kind of thing can happen. It's hard to accept that this building which was here just yesterday no longer exists.

When I saw the footage of the second plane hitting the World Trade Center, I felt disgusted at the sight of the explosion. It was nothing like in the games or in the movies. I didn't think it was cool or exciting; I was horrified. It finally hit me how real these things are, how real people die when this happens. It made me really upset when some of my friends were laughing and cracking jokes about the situation; that was the single most heartless and cold thing I think I've ever seen them do. I don't think I'll ever fantasize about bombs and explosions again after this, I realize today more than ever how in the bravado of smoke and flames, real people are getting hurt and killed.