Standing in line, my stomach wanted to give back my breakfast. Every step I took closer made me second-guess my strength. The happy chatter that occupied my neighbors when we were at the end of the line was replaced by quiet tears and a sense of fear as we neared the front. I was afraid of feeling the same feelings I felt ten years ago; helpless, scared, sad. The Smithsonian staff members let us in the special exhibit in groups of 10-15 people. Waiting with my group, I wasn’t sure if I was really prepared to see the 50 artifacts from the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, or the crashed United 93 plane from September 11th, 2001. Ten years ago, my country, as I knew it, changed. Other than visiting Ground Zero in 2002, this September 11: Remembrance and Reflection exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History was the closest I have ever been to the physical damage of that day.
