You can mark 9-11-01 as the day the world changed forever for all of us New Yorkers and Americans. Ten years later my own life has changed so drastically from where I was that Tuesday morning. I am now married with three beautiful children, living in our own home, and now married eight years. Our five-year-old just started kindergarten and tonight we started to tell him about the important anniversary that tomorrow brings. Of course he doesn't understand much beyond a bunch of bad guys hurting a lot of good, innocent people. As he gets older he will learn what Patriot Day is all about but it is my husband and my memory of that day that will really teach him what really changed that day.
I came across this entry in my journal from 9/9/02. I was compelled to write it so I would never forget what 9/11/01 was like for me personally and for all of us. It still holds true today -life is precious; treasure what you have for you don't know when it will be taken from you. Love one another and treat each other well and pray for all those families who mark this anniversary as the murder of their loved ones. On the 10th anniversary my family and I will go to church and pray for all those affected by this tragedy, we will fly our American flag proudly, and we will light a candle on our doorstep just like we did 10 years ago to show the world we can once again unite as we did then and we will never forget 9-11-01!
9/9/02 - Marking the First Anniversary- My Personal Account
It's hard to imagine the anniversary we are preparing to...preparing to what, exactly? Certainly not celebrate. I guess commemorate is more accurate. It's been one year since all of our lives changed. Some for the worst and some, for lack of a better word, for the better. We, who were not directly affected, learned to value and treasure our lives and our loved ones. And we counted ourselves lucky to be among such a disaster.
But one year has not faded the sadness that still consumes my thoughts. Each time I see footage of those buildings hit by the planes, and worse, to see them fall, I get an overwhelming feeling of sadness and despair. I'm quickly snapped back to one year ago, and I can clearly see how everything unfolded:
I believe as long as I live, I will forever have that day permanently etched in my memory. It was after 8:30 a.m on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. I was sitting at my desk at the Gurwin Center when the phone rang. It was my mother calling to tell me the Twin Towers had just been hit by a plane. It must have been just after 8:46 a.m. I was on the phone with her talking about how something like this once happened to the Empire State Building - did she know if it was small plane? Then quickly thinking nothing more of it, and putting it out of our thoughts we began to talk about other, less important things when my mother uttered a single scream, "Ay dios mio, they've hit the other tower!" I can still hear the shrill of her scream as she saw it unfold, like most New Yorkers, on her television set. We knew then it was no sad accident; it was a deliberate act. I asked her what was happening, what they were showing. She told me how both towers were billowing smoke and flames. I told her I would call her back in a little while.
I walked out to tell my co-workers and before you knew it, we were all huddled by the radio in our office, listening to continuing coverage of the horrors. I called Steve right away to hell him what happened, and he said he had no idea. He had heard something from a customer, but he had no idea what had occurred. Some us went to the main lounge where the TV had been turned on to the coverage. They kept replaying the footage of the second plane hitting the tower, because as chances had it, all the television crews were covering the first fire. One of the administrators asked us to return to our desks, so as not to alarm the residents. We complied and returned to listening to the radio. No one, at any moment could possibly have imagined what was to unfold. The news was reporting that there were rumors a plane had been hijacked from Boston's Logan Airport and from Newark Airport. Hijacked? How? Did that mean there were innocent people on those planes, not just suicidal maniacs? The thought was just too much.
Listening to the coverage on the radio gave us more of an opportunity to use our imagination -we were lucky we didn't see it on television. I called my mother back a half and hour later and the things she told me truly made me cringe. She said how they were watching the the coverage run live when people began to fall from the buildings. They were apparently jumping out, sometimes two at a time, sometimes holding hands. And each time, the television cameras were there to catch it on tape. What a gruesome sight to watch. It made you wonder what those people saw that made them think there was no hope but to jump out those towering infernos to a horrible death. I remember hearing the reporters on the radio screaming when they witnessed those deaths firsthand, it was truly sad. But of course, the worst was still to come.
As we listened to the radio, there was a second report of a plane hitting the Pentagon and the national mall. Still, other reports said a plan was heading down the Potomac River and there was no contact with the pilot. Another report said there was also a plane in Texas who had lost contact with Air Traffic Control. To us, listening in our small office on Long Island, it seemed like World War III had come to the States. We had no idea what to think. I just remember being very scared and calling Steve to talk to him. We just kept thinking, what's next? What target is next?
Shortly after 10 a.m. the screams of the people on street and of the reporters on the radio filled the air. The second tower had collapsed. We knew what that meant-it had collapsed on innocent people. It was just so unthinkable to believe the tower was gone. Immediately there was a call for all off-duty rescue workers, retired policemen, EMTs and physicians to rush to the scene to help. There was still no idea as to how many people were in the building or how many had escaped.
Planes were grounded and re-routed. All air traffic ceased and the major roads on Long Island, the LIE, Northern State and the Cross Island were emptied to make room the emergency workers. As the day unfolded, there was a confirmed report the Pentagon had been hit by a plane and was on fire. Then there was a report that a plane had crashed in Pennsylvania, killing all people on the board. We didn't find out until a few days later that those people died fighting the terrorists on board, stopping them from hitting into another building, possibly the White House. It was unfathomable at the time to think about these planes being used as weapons against us.
Meanwhile, back in New York, shortly after the second tower collapsed, World Trade Center's South Tower collapsed into the escaping crowds below. The radio reported the smoky fog that engulfed the more than 16 blocks around the Trade Center forced people to run down the streets, finding shelter where they could. You could hear the chaos at the scene, engines roaring, people screaming and crying, policeman yelling out "both towers have collapsed." It was a truly horrific sight to bear. We at the Center prayed silently to our own respective Gods. I prayed I didn't know anyone in there, I prayed for those killed, their families and the countless others who were hurt. I remember talking to my sister on the phone and she told me about her friend's brother who was missing from the South Tower. We later found out he had narrowly escaped after the second plane hit. Most of his co-workers did not, riding an elevator back up to their office and to their own deaths. This was a story told over and over again on the news, in the papers, on the radio - so many lives destroyed.
I remember leaving work that day and not being able to hear one single bird chirp or sing. It was as if nature itself had been silenced, perhaps mourning the thousands of deaths that terrible day. That night my family and I watched the television coverage non-stop, quieting the tv only when we heard planes flying overhead. The planes of course were the fighter jets protecting our Island from any other acts of terrorism. I went to bed that night, crying at all the things I had heard and seen that day and the realization that so many people didn't make it home to their own homes and beds that night. That many children went to sleep without their parents and many spouses waited all night for their loved ones to come home. But that was not to happen.
I awoke the next morning, hoping against hope it was all a terrible dream, but the reports were still streaming all over the television. Estimated reports said probably around 6,000 total dead at the World Trade Center alone, about 400 of them firefighters and policeman who had rushed to the scene to help in rescue efforts. I can remember scanning the papers each day to see if there was anyone I recognized. Thank God, no one, but so many desperate faces were draped across the newspaper pages, looking for loved ones who would never again return home. You clung to hope that people could still be alive down in that rubble. At least, you thought that until you saw what the rubble looked like and then you began to lose a little bit of hope, day by day.
For days, people across Long Island found ways to cope. On September 12, my co-workers and I went to St. Patrick's in Bay Shore for a special mid-day service. There was candlelight vigil across the whole nation on that Friday and everyone was asked to light a white candle on their steps. People began to raise the American flag, and before you knew it, every house and business was flying the flag. It was a comforting thought to see the country uniting, but it didn't lessen the sadness we all felt. People were nicer on the roads, if only for a few weeks after the events. But things were still quiet and the country thirsted for revenge on the terrorists.
Those first few days and weeks after September 11 turned into months and then suddenly, it was a year. It came too quickly, as if I had been asleep this whole year and am now waking from a terrible nightmare. But I know we must remember and be thankful for all those left behind - learn to value what you have in your life now, for you don't know when it will be taken away from you. And I am thankful - for my parents, my sisters, my nephews, my fiancee, my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and all those in my life. I love them more than they could ever know. Remember September 11 and those who perished that day-pray for their friends, families and the country to get through it. God Bless America and New York!
I came across this entry in my journal from 9/9/02. I was compelled to write it so I would never forget what 9/11/01 was like for me personally and for all of us. It still holds true today -life is precious; treasure what you have for you don't know when it will be taken from you. Love one another and treat each other well and pray for all those families who mark this anniversary as the murder of their loved ones. On the 10th anniversary my family and I will go to church and pray for all those affected by this tragedy, we will fly our American flag proudly, and we will light a candle on our doorstep just like we did 10 years ago to show the world we can once again unite as we did then and we will never forget 9-11-01!
9/9/02 - Marking the First Anniversary- My Personal Account
It's hard to imagine the anniversary we are preparing to...preparing to what, exactly? Certainly not celebrate. I guess commemorate is more accurate. It's been one year since all of our lives changed. Some for the worst and some, for lack of a better word, for the better. We, who were not directly affected, learned to value and treasure our lives and our loved ones. And we counted ourselves lucky to be among such a disaster.
But one year has not faded the sadness that still consumes my thoughts. Each time I see footage of those buildings hit by the planes, and worse, to see them fall, I get an overwhelming feeling of sadness and despair. I'm quickly snapped back to one year ago, and I can clearly see how everything unfolded:
I believe as long as I live, I will forever have that day permanently etched in my memory. It was after 8:30 a.m on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. I was sitting at my desk at the Gurwin Center when the phone rang. It was my mother calling to tell me the Twin Towers had just been hit by a plane. It must have been just after 8:46 a.m. I was on the phone with her talking about how something like this once happened to the Empire State Building - did she know if it was small plane? Then quickly thinking nothing more of it, and putting it out of our thoughts we began to talk about other, less important things when my mother uttered a single scream, "Ay dios mio, they've hit the other tower!" I can still hear the shrill of her scream as she saw it unfold, like most New Yorkers, on her television set. We knew then it was no sad accident; it was a deliberate act. I asked her what was happening, what they were showing. She told me how both towers were billowing smoke and flames. I told her I would call her back in a little while.
I walked out to tell my co-workers and before you knew it, we were all huddled by the radio in our office, listening to continuing coverage of the horrors. I called Steve right away to hell him what happened, and he said he had no idea. He had heard something from a customer, but he had no idea what had occurred. Some us went to the main lounge where the TV had been turned on to the coverage. They kept replaying the footage of the second plane hitting the tower, because as chances had it, all the television crews were covering the first fire. One of the administrators asked us to return to our desks, so as not to alarm the residents. We complied and returned to listening to the radio. No one, at any moment could possibly have imagined what was to unfold. The news was reporting that there were rumors a plane had been hijacked from Boston's Logan Airport and from Newark Airport. Hijacked? How? Did that mean there were innocent people on those planes, not just suicidal maniacs? The thought was just too much.
Listening to the coverage on the radio gave us more of an opportunity to use our imagination -we were lucky we didn't see it on television. I called my mother back a half and hour later and the things she told me truly made me cringe. She said how they were watching the the coverage run live when people began to fall from the buildings. They were apparently jumping out, sometimes two at a time, sometimes holding hands. And each time, the television cameras were there to catch it on tape. What a gruesome sight to watch. It made you wonder what those people saw that made them think there was no hope but to jump out those towering infernos to a horrible death. I remember hearing the reporters on the radio screaming when they witnessed those deaths firsthand, it was truly sad. But of course, the worst was still to come.
As we listened to the radio, there was a second report of a plane hitting the Pentagon and the national mall. Still, other reports said a plan was heading down the Potomac River and there was no contact with the pilot. Another report said there was also a plane in Texas who had lost contact with Air Traffic Control. To us, listening in our small office on Long Island, it seemed like World War III had come to the States. We had no idea what to think. I just remember being very scared and calling Steve to talk to him. We just kept thinking, what's next? What target is next?
Shortly after 10 a.m. the screams of the people on street and of the reporters on the radio filled the air. The second tower had collapsed. We knew what that meant-it had collapsed on innocent people. It was just so unthinkable to believe the tower was gone. Immediately there was a call for all off-duty rescue workers, retired policemen, EMTs and physicians to rush to the scene to help. There was still no idea as to how many people were in the building or how many had escaped.
Planes were grounded and re-routed. All air traffic ceased and the major roads on Long Island, the LIE, Northern State and the Cross Island were emptied to make room the emergency workers. As the day unfolded, there was a confirmed report the Pentagon had been hit by a plane and was on fire. Then there was a report that a plane had crashed in Pennsylvania, killing all people on the board. We didn't find out until a few days later that those people died fighting the terrorists on board, stopping them from hitting into another building, possibly the White House. It was unfathomable at the time to think about these planes being used as weapons against us.
Meanwhile, back in New York, shortly after the second tower collapsed, World Trade Center's South Tower collapsed into the escaping crowds below. The radio reported the smoky fog that engulfed the more than 16 blocks around the Trade Center forced people to run down the streets, finding shelter where they could. You could hear the chaos at the scene, engines roaring, people screaming and crying, policeman yelling out "both towers have collapsed." It was a truly horrific sight to bear. We at the Center prayed silently to our own respective Gods. I prayed I didn't know anyone in there, I prayed for those killed, their families and the countless others who were hurt. I remember talking to my sister on the phone and she told me about her friend's brother who was missing from the South Tower. We later found out he had narrowly escaped after the second plane hit. Most of his co-workers did not, riding an elevator back up to their office and to their own deaths. This was a story told over and over again on the news, in the papers, on the radio - so many lives destroyed.
I remember leaving work that day and not being able to hear one single bird chirp or sing. It was as if nature itself had been silenced, perhaps mourning the thousands of deaths that terrible day. That night my family and I watched the television coverage non-stop, quieting the tv only when we heard planes flying overhead. The planes of course were the fighter jets protecting our Island from any other acts of terrorism. I went to bed that night, crying at all the things I had heard and seen that day and the realization that so many people didn't make it home to their own homes and beds that night. That many children went to sleep without their parents and many spouses waited all night for their loved ones to come home. But that was not to happen.
I awoke the next morning, hoping against hope it was all a terrible dream, but the reports were still streaming all over the television. Estimated reports said probably around 6,000 total dead at the World Trade Center alone, about 400 of them firefighters and policeman who had rushed to the scene to help in rescue efforts. I can remember scanning the papers each day to see if there was anyone I recognized. Thank God, no one, but so many desperate faces were draped across the newspaper pages, looking for loved ones who would never again return home. You clung to hope that people could still be alive down in that rubble. At least, you thought that until you saw what the rubble looked like and then you began to lose a little bit of hope, day by day.
For days, people across Long Island found ways to cope. On September 12, my co-workers and I went to St. Patrick's in Bay Shore for a special mid-day service. There was candlelight vigil across the whole nation on that Friday and everyone was asked to light a white candle on their steps. People began to raise the American flag, and before you knew it, every house and business was flying the flag. It was a comforting thought to see the country uniting, but it didn't lessen the sadness we all felt. People were nicer on the roads, if only for a few weeks after the events. But things were still quiet and the country thirsted for revenge on the terrorists.
Those first few days and weeks after September 11 turned into months and then suddenly, it was a year. It came too quickly, as if I had been asleep this whole year and am now waking from a terrible nightmare. But I know we must remember and be thankful for all those left behind - learn to value what you have in your life now, for you don't know when it will be taken away from you. And I am thankful - for my parents, my sisters, my nephews, my fiancee, my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and all those in my life. I love them more than they could ever know. Remember September 11 and those who perished that day-pray for their friends, families and the country to get through it. God Bless America and New York!
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