I can recall, in vivid detail, just where I was and what I was doing when I heard about the tragic events unfolding in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001. We had just celebrated my son’s first birthday the day before and were lounging on the couch, watching Blue’s Clues, as content as a mother and child could be. The phone rang and I was told to turn on the news.
The images of blazing fire and thick smoke rolling out of the World Trade Center were startling and every news channel was reporting with a sense of confusion and urgency. My son went off to play, innocently unaware of why jaws were dropping across America.
My active-duty husband came through the door, explaining they’d sent all non-essential personnel home, essentially shutting down the base. We sat and watched, mortified, as the second plane crashed. There was chaos in our living room. There was chaos, at least momentarily, across our nation.
Sept. 11, 2001 is a date much like Nov. 22, 1963, when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in plain view. Americans who lived through these tragedies remember where they were, who they were with and how they reacted. They are days of deep sadness for citizens in the Land of the Free.
More people perished on that morning than died at Pearl Harbor. Close to 3,000 people were lost. Many were parents, spouses, relatives and friends… leaving loved ones to sift through the rubble for answers.
I knew no one lost, but I cried just the same.
In the nine years since, the U.S. has poured more effort into homeland security and countless conspiracy theories have cropped up. In journalism classes, they ask students if it was ethical to publish photos of “the jumpers” on front pages world-wide. Documentaries detail the lives of emergency workers suffering from chronic breathing disorders and how families have coped with the losses of that shocking day.
Finger-pointing ensued. How could nineteen fanatical individuals inflict so much devastation on our country in a single morning?
The C.I.A, F.B.I or airport security taking the blame doesn’t change a thing. America had been attacked.
In the aftermath of the hijackings, plane crashes and fallen towers, Americans regained their composure and an overwhelming sense of patriotism swelled. Heroic rescue workers searched for the missing and vigils brought people together to mourn and remember.
Vigils continue to this day and most will always remember.
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