At the time of the Sept. 11, attacks I was a freshman in my first month of college. On Sept. 11, 2001 I went on a field trip to a charity organization whose goal is to help the disadvantaged of the community in any way possible. They were not a charity organization that would simply throw money at the problem. These were people who went out and got their hands dirty to maintain the community. When both towers were hit, and even as they fell I was on a roof, putting down fresh tar for the elderly gentleman who lived there and could no longer climb a ladder to do the work himself. Three of my classmates were on the roof with me, a few were still on the ground (being afraid of heights) helping clear the garden and porch of debris. Other classmates of mine were at different homes in the rural WV countryside performing similar chores. Some of us heard the news about the attacks, some of us didn’t. I was one who didn’t.

I didn’t know about the attacks until 3:30 that afternoon. To this day I still have not seen footage of the towers being hit. I doubt I ever will. It is not a scene that anyone likes to have replayed. Today, though, I would like to share two journal entries I wrote for my Intercultural Orientation class on Sept. 11, 2001. (Keep in mind, this is the class that took the field trip, and the professor required 3 journal entries per week.)

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Journal Entry # 5

Intercultural Orientation. Why do we need it? To understand each other? But why? Can we understand each other without trying? One incident in India comes to mind.

My friends, American and Indian, and I were out shopping and sightseeing and it was quite a bit after lunchtime when we realized we were hungy. Our teachers realized, also, that they were hungry as well, so we stopped for lunch. Half the bus went to Pizza Hut, the other half went to Domino’s. In Domino’s we ordered our pizza, without too much difficulty. Our only trouble was figuring out what Capsicum was.

After our pizza had been ordered and served, we moved the tables together (all three of them), sat, and ate. While we ate we joked, talked, laughed, and listened to the music on the radio. Quite unexpectedly, an old song came on. We all started singing along. It was quite interesting. At that moment, we had no language barrier, or cultural barrier. We were 12 teenagers eating pizza at Domino’s. We are from different countries, but we had a common culture: Music.

Music is the one language that is truly global. There are many different styles of music, just as there are many languages, cultures, countries, etc. Once you learn what kind of music a person listens to, you gain a slight insight to their psyche. Music can say a lot, not only about people, but about society as well. Music can criticize society, or show societal values. Music can bring people together or push people apart. Music can do many things.

What is most interesting is that music plays a role in every person’s life. Even if they choose not to listen to music, they hear it at some point in the day. Mothers will sing to their children. Hymns are sung at religious services. Radios play in stores. Music was a common culture for our group of 12 in India, and it’s a common culture for many others.

(For those interested, the song playing in Domino’s in India to which we all sang along is here.)

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Journal Entry # 6

We claim freedom, but are we really? If we are truly free, why do we still classify? Why do we separate? Rudyard Kipling once said, ” All the people like us are we, everyone else is they.” Why do we do this? When shall we be free?

We kill infants for being the wrong gender. We kill people for being the wrong color. We kill people for being the wrong religion. We kill people because they attack us. When does the cycle end? When every last person is dead? When we destroy not only ourselves, but our children, our planet, everything? When?

International politics are much like the gang culture. We have our ‘families’ and when we’re attacked, we attack back. It’s a classic knee-jerk reaction.  All it does is perpetuate the violence. Does anyone ever think to say enough is enough?!? Patriarchal societies are the most violent societies. Matriarcha societies, where women are held to be of value, are not as violent. It’s been proven, though, that democracies, mostly patriarchal societies, don’t fight each other. So why do we fight everyone else? Democracies won’t fight each other, but they fight everyone else? Seems a bit strange to me.

Why do we fight in the first place? We are bound to disagree with each other over things. That’s only human. But to fight over a disagreement is beastial. Are we no better than beasts? Are we simple primates still fighting for dominance?

When does it all end? Where does it all end? It starts in our hearts. When we can finally say that we truly love one another is when it will end. When we finally stop to listen is when it will end. Until then the senseless bloodshed will continue.

(Included these lyrics in the journal entry.)