Gusse: 9/11 brought country together

I remember Sept. 11, 2001 well. What started off as an ordinary morning 10 years agob turned out to be a day that would forever change this country. I turned on the television in my Los Angeles home with breaking news of an accidental airplane crash in New York City.

As I got ready, while still listening to the sound of the television, I recall the newscasters voice say something like “Oh my God, another airplane just hit the other Tower.” At that point, chills ran down my back and I knew that this was no accident. War was imminent and the entire country was in shock I recall thinking, “How can this happen here in the USA?”

We all have some type of link to this tragedy and those images will be permanently affixed in my brain.

As horrible as this tragedy was, it brought this country together in a way that many of us thought would never happen. The “War on Terror” campaign began shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks and it brought a sense of patriotism to many of us. Soon afterward, many men and women enlisted in the armed forces and Paul T. Nakamura was one of those individuals. Paul is the only brother to Miki Nakamura-Morales (my cousin-in-law) and Pearl Nakamura. Miki has shared many stories with me about this awesome young man.

Paul enlisted in the Army because he was upset about what had occurred and felt that it was his duty to serve. He was proud to be in uniform serving his country and would often call home to tell his family that everything was fine just so they would not worry. Paul, a 21-year-old Army Reservist with the 437th Medical Co., died on June 19, 2003. He was killed when a rocket-propelled grenade hit the military ambulance in which he was tending to a wounded soldier about 20 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq.

I attended Paul’s funeral and my eyes filled with tears at the hurt and pain his parents were going through of having to bury their only son that day. Having children of my own, I don’t want to imagine having to bury my child. We buried a soldier that day — a soldier that gave his life for his country.