In the words of Alan Jackson, "Where were you when the world stopped turning on that September day?"*
I can remember that day as if it was yesterday. I was in my car heading to work. I had the radio on and there was a breaking news story. The lady said that a plane had crashed into one of the World Trade Towers in New York city.
My initial reaction was "Oh my gosh! What happened?" I assumed it was some sort of accident; mechanical problem with the plane, etc. It never even crossed my mind that it would have been a terrorist attack.
When I walked into work, all the TV's in the hallway of my building were turned on to the news and I heard that a second plane had crashed into the other tower. It was at this point I heard the media talking of a suspected terrorist attack. I walked into my office in a daze, not quite sure what to believe. And as the morning went on, the news just kept getting worse.
I remember thinking (and I wrote this in my journal), that something must be wrong with me because I wasn't feeling what everyone around me seemed to be feeling. I wasn't crying. I didn't seem to feel anything other than shock and disbelief. It took about three days before the shock finally wore off enough that I could really understand the gravity of what happened. But I still don't remember crying. I was so far away from it all that it just didn't seem real. My life continued on as normal. I was safe in my little part of the country and was almost oblivious to what was going on 2,000 miles away. I say "almost" because the only thing connecting me to reality was the news.
It was on the 1st anniversary of 9/11 that I first remember being able to cry and mourn with the rest of the world. We held a candlelight vigil on campus and being there surrounded by others really impacted me. For the first time I felt like I was part of what the rest of this country (and the world) was going through.
It seems so unreal that it all happened seven years ago.
*Where were you that day when you heard the news? What were you doing? How did you feel? Please share any thoughts you might have!
4 comments:
I was in Denmark, very far away, but saw it all on CNN. My sister callede me and tolde me to turn on the TV, and for the rest of the day and night I just sat there looking at it.....I cryed a lot that day,and I don't think the world will be the same after 9/11....yet the world is still turning
Nice post
I had the day off work and was at home in England. I think my feelings were quite similar to yours. It didn't seem feasible that something like that could happen! The news footage looked like a movie clip which made it seem even less real. Sadly it was a very real event! It's been a quick 7 years!
I was sitting waiting for my 2nd college class to begin (for that day) when my friend came in and told me the news. I was in shock, and thought how bizarre that was. I had to sit through the a few more classes and I was unable to focus, since I was worried about my father and unsure where he was at that particular morning(given the nature of his job--with the second plane hitting the Pentagon) and I didn't get a chance to talk to my mom until later that afternoon and I was so grateful to find out he was on a business trip in the midwest. I remember watching it over and over (the plane hit) on the television screen of our neighbors, stunned and in disbelief. Since they grounded all of the planes my dad and his coworker decided to drive home. They drove through the night and got home much sooner than if he waited for a flight (he didn't like the idea of being stranded there). He surprised my mom and brothers by arriving the next day!
I was working at the airport and was on my way to work when I heard about the first plane. I got into my office and went into the conference room just in time to see the second plane hit the second tower. We spent the day making sure that all of our planes were on the ground and gathering infomation to share with employees and passengers. The reality of what had happened really hit home the next couple of days as I went to work and walked around an empty airport since flights were grounded. The day flights were allowed back in the air I found myself in the lobby dealing with passengers who by this time just wanted to get home safely. I will never forget a lady who didn't speak English coming up to me with a handful of knives and not understanding why she couldn't take them through security.
Post a Comment