What are your emotions when you see this picture?

This iconic picture of an anonymous man falling to his death invokes many strong emotions for those who experienced live the events of 9/11.  But for others, who are younger, this picture is simply an artifact of history.

I showed the picture of the falling man of 9/11 to people from older and younger generations. The reactions were very different and sometimes surprising. First I showed the picture of the falling man of 9/11 to the youngest of the two generations, a ten year-old named Kathleen.  While she recognized the picture, her answer was unemotional and unconnected . She simply told me what was happening in the picture.

Then I asked a forty-two woman named Edlima. Her response was very different from the younger generation .  She gasped as she saw the picture and hesitated, then shared her personal feelings about how sad the picture is and how impactful that day was to those who experienced it.

From this experiment I realized that 9/11 is becoming history to the newer generations.  But to those who were living and experienced it still hold onto it as a emotional memory and are fighting its changing place in our present culture.