Few UNC students were affected by the news on Monday of tornados destroying a high school and then killing two students at the University of Maryland, College Park. The only reason why it was important to me was because that high school was one that I spent four years of my life at. But, while this event hit close to home, it seemed much more distant to me than the events of Sept. 11th.
After all of my calls to family and friends had shown me that no one I knew was injured, I thought about how small this incident was compared to the thousands of deaths only two weeks ago. There was a time that news of Laurel High losing its roof to a tornado would have shocked me. It was, after all, the place where I met so many friends and made so many memories.
Now, instead of shock and disbelief, I realize how trivial a school building is. Laurel High School might have been a home for me, but it will be repaired. The grief that I feel for my nation is far greater than the one that I feel for something that would have been so significant before that awful day.
Caleb Ksanznak
Sophomore
Business Administration
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