Editor’s Note: This is a reprint of an editorial written by former East Penn Press editor Corrine Durdock which was printed in the Sept. 15, 2004 edition of The Press.

Saturday brought mixed emotions for me. I began the morning viewing the ceremony in New York City in memory of the victims of Sept. 11, 2001. I listened as each name was announced. I identified with the parents and grandparents, sisters and brothers, as they paused and said “and my (son or daughter) ...” and then listed the name of their loved one who had been killed on that fateful day.

Before the end of the ceremony, I had to leave to attend a college-football game. With the names still droning in my head, I switched gears.

To me, it was a good example of what has happened to my life since Sept. 11, 2001. Although I can’t erase the memory of the plane hitting the twin towers, the sights of the panic as people ran for their lives, the unbelievable sight of the towers collapsing, I am moving on.

The old adage proves true ... Life goes on.

However, life after Sept. 11, 2001 will never be the same and I grieve for the loss. My grief is real, although I realize it is minuscule in light of the grief the people who attended the NYC ceremony feel at the loss of a loved one.

My grief is for the loss of innocence I felt as an American. I will never feel completely safe again. When I board an airplane; when I attend a well-advertised event; when I view nationally or internationally televised events, an uneasy thought crops up ... Will some terrorist decide this is the day.

Our government has acted in order to prevent such happenings again with the establishment of a Department of Homeland Security. But, I realize it can only do so much.

The 9/11 Commission has made a number of recommendations and legislators are now considering how to enact them. Our legislators must be encouraged to continue to work on this legislation.

I can also help by being more alert, more aware of my surroundings.

There is a new generation of Americans who know nothing about the events of 9/11 ... the millions of babies who were born after the event. We owe it to them to try to return to a normalcy, so they can grow up with a sense of security as we did.

We must continue in our resolve to make plans for the future. If we do that, then we will have honored all the 9/11 victims and they will not be forgotten.

Corrine Durdock

Emmaus