I am an American. I am pleased as punch that I am an American, because being a citizen here has had a giant hand in helping to mold me into the person I am today, and I cannot fathom the thought of living in another country. I am grateful that I have the opportunity to speak my mind and my thoughts and the ability to disagree with our leaders without fear of retribution. I am grateful to those who, civilian or military, have given their lives to defend those freedoms that so many of us take for granted. I am still appalled at what happened two years today, as I can still remember that growing pit of fear and sadness in my stomach that appeared that morning when my mother IMed me as soon as I woke up to tell me to turn on any channel on the TV, and I still get teary-eyed when I see pictures of Ground Zero and think of the mightiness that once stood there and the thousands of people whose lives were needlessly lost. I am still an idealist at heart and hope that one day, everyone on Earth can live and coexist in peace. I am an American, first and foremost.