During the course of the terrorist assault on Mumbai, more than 180 lives were lost.

For Alisha Mashruwala ’11 and many other Harvard students, the attacks in Mumbai hit close to home, as many of them still have family and friends living in the now-devastated city.

Speaking to the Harvard Crimson, Alisha told reporters that, on the night of the attacks, she had called her mother and could hear grenades exploding in the background.

The Crimson reports:

“When I was talking to my mom, I could hear grenade bombs on the phone, and I just didn’t know what to say,” she said. “The first thing I did was hope that everyone in my family was safe.”

As she later found out, her family and friends had several close calls. One family friend was at the Taj Mahal Hotel during the attack but managed to escape at 3 a.m., six hours after the attacks had begun. A family friend at the Oberoi Hotel pretended to be dead until she was told to escape from a back door.

“I cannot think what they were thinking while they were in there,” she said.

In all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, the Mumbai terrorist attacks—for many Americans—appear to have been lost in the shuffle.

However, take some time out today to be truly grateful for all that you have, and remember those who lost everything in the blink of an eye.