09/11 Disconnection and Reunion

When you get to a point in your life where you hit the "10 years ago" milestone, things start to become more significant. The first one hit when I realized that it had been 10 years since I bought Green Day's Dookie. The next major was going to my 10 year high school reunion (so weird). The one that's hit me lately is my 10 year study abroad reunion.

In August 2001, I embarked on a semester long, four-course backpacking tour of Europe. It was an incredible adventure for me to embark on and I had little clue what impact it would have on my life. I thought I was a traveler before but after it was amplified to the Nth degree. One of the most significant events to happen on the trip was my 21st birthday. Right, I wish that had been the milestone in the world's history for the year. Turns out, it was the day after. Fresh start on my 21st year, that day we toured the Kon Tiki Museum (super interesting) and Edvard Munch Museum (scream!). After the museums, we were killing time by skipping rocks in the waters of Oslo waiting for a boat bus. At that period of my life, it was like any other day, though I was not paying attention enough to expect the unexpected. Two British guys who were watching us, approached and asked if we were Americans, to which we had a few sarcastic responses. Theirs were less so, telling us the news of what was happening in our own country. "We've just received an SMS from our friends in London and..."

Most people have similar stories of being glued to news coverage, contacting loved ones, wondering what would come next. The hardest part for me is that because I was half a world away, I felt and continue to feel very disconnected to this seminal event in modern U.S. history. Upon return to the U.S., I was stopped cold by the sight of National Guard troops carrying guns through the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport. My urging people to get over it and move on were met with much rebuff. It wasn't until I saw the documentary 9/11 six months later that I began to understand what my fellow countrymen had gone through.

Now that it has been 10 years, I still feel disconnected but have a better sense of understanding. I savour that four months in time where it was ok to tell people I was an American while traveling in Europe. I look forward to reuniting with several of my traveling compatriots next weekend to discuss and reminisce over how we and the world have grown.