This morning, many students got out of bed, went to class listening to their music and went about their daily routine just as they would for any other day. Today, however, is not just any other day. Some students on campus are remembering their friends, family and loved ones who lost their lives on this day 13 years ago.

Sept. 11, 2001. The day our nation was attacked. The World Trade Centers crumbled to the ground after terrorist-controlled airplanes flew into them. That day, 2,753 — excluding the hijackers — were killed.

The hijackers themselves were already living in the United States and hijacked American planes to fly into the towers. America was left vulnerable and heartbroken after the attack on our beloved country, and the date Sept. 11 would forever live in infamy.

Many people will take today to remember what they were doing when the towers fell. Some of us were watching it on T.V. or watching our mothers break down in tears as the buildings fell. Some people may have been in shock, some people may have been in the middle of receiving what from then on would likely be the most difficult phone call they have ever had to take. Some of us might not even remember it.

Most of us were too young to realize then what an impact the falling of the World Trade Centers would have on this country. Yes, we knew it was sad, that it was caused by bad people and that thousands of people died. What we didn’t know then is that we would still be dealing with the repercussions that followed 13 years later. A war and the rise in the price of foreign oil are a few of the things that have affected us from childhood into our adult lives.

More than lives were lost Sept. 11, 2001. Our pride was hurt. We as a nation had to come together to comfort one another, take care of one another and remember the loved ones no longer with us. Ground Zero was a new place and although it did not stand tall into the New York skyline, it shared equal if not more importance to the American people.

Where the Twin Towers once stood is now a national memorial to remember those who were lost. The new One World Trade Center — The Freedom Tower — and the 9/11 Memorial are places where people will gather today from all across the country to mourn lost family members, police, firefighters and soldiers who were lost in the rubble.

The memorial is not the only place, however, where people can remember our fallen loved ones. Today is a day of remembrance, no matter where a person is. Sadly, many students will wake up today completely oblivious of the event that took place on this date years ago.

While reading this today, you may not have been directly impacted by the falling of the towers, but look around you. You are on a campus with nearly 35,000 students. Maybe the person you sit by in your lecture lost a loved one in the plane crash. Or that girl on the bus lost her father because he went into the building trying to save someone else. We are a nation united, and today is a day to remember what makes this nation so great — the support we give to our fellow Americans.