The area where I child grows up will always have a significant effect on who they are as a person and what they become. Growing up in a secluded suburban town 40 minutes from New York City, I never witnessed any deadly natural disasters like the 2004 tsunami that hit Southeast Asia. Before September 11, 2001, my first experience of death to close friends, I would consider myself naive because even as the incident was unfolding I still thought that it could not be happening to a place so close to us. I was brought up to think that someone may make bad decisions but overall they are inherently good people not knowing the hijacker’s sole purpose was to kill as many as possible. Now that I am older and have been exposed to what tragedies go on throughout the world I see how one’s perception of identity, culture, and society differs from region to region. A child growing up in China, a country known for frequently having deadly natural disasters would learn to cherish what they have more then someone living in the US. Although there may not be as many disasters in The United States compared to China or countries in the region, the US always helps these less fortunate countries raising money for the relief effort. We know that at any time a hurricane could kill thousands and we would want the help from others as well. The photograph of the two smiling children holding a poster with images of the tsunami’s aftermath may anger some readers because they may believe the children should not be smiling. This is not disrespect but just an instance where the children are still naïve to what really goes on in the world. Until 9/11 I had no idea a deadly event like that could take place so close to me thinking that the deadly events happened only in other countries thousands of miles away from me.
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