Peter Beidler reflects in this essay upon his experiences with his first year students following the events of 9-11. When the class met, still numb with the horror of events, Beidler and his apprentice teacher devised a different kind of exercise for the class. Having taken fifteen minutes to talk about the attacks with students, the author passed out a sheet of paper with two topics on it and asked his students to choose one and write about one for 20 minutes. In this article he presents with student permission, some of their remarks on the following topics: (1) Vulnerability; and (2) Reaction.