9 – 11
9-11. Always remember.
My dad was visiting. Our babysitter was very late. An otherwise normal morning until my grandmother called from out of town to make sure we were ok. “Do you live near the World Trade Center?” she asked. Well, that’s all relative. My mother called soon after, also to make sure we were ok- they both knew about the problem before we did. With the kids so young (almost 4 months and just over 2 years), we were busy in the mornings and didn’t have the news on…until we got the calls.
In my family, we were all very lucky. Our sitter changed trains at the WTC just in time. My husband’s aunt was near the buildings but not in them. Our friend got to his meeting too early and was sitting outside with his coffee. Another friend was out of the country, and therefore not in her office in the tower. But several of her colleagues were at work that day…their last day. My cousin had a friend on each of the planes. And a 4 year old classmate of one of my clients told a story later that week as he built a tower out of leggos and knocked it down with a leggo airplane. He told of the bad guys flying the plane into his mom’s office and how she didn’t make it out of work that day. I had to leave the classroom so my little client wouldn’t notice my tears.
There are so many connections to that day. My older son recently volunteered at the Humane Society of NY where they do a special program with Tuesday’s Children – NY Kids who lost a parent in the devastation.
There’s so much grieving. Fortunately, I know many people who have reason to celebrate the day – like the birth of a child. Our neighbor’s daughter was born that very morning, just as the towers were falling. And I have a couple of college friends whose children were born on 9 – 11 but in more recent years…still a bright light on a day that is dark for so many.
I’m not sure how to end this blog today. There’s no end to the memories of this day. There’s no end to the feelings one experiences when hearing “9-11,” or when looking a the city skyline. There’s no end to the sorrow that some families feel over the loss of a loved one…a parent, a spouse, a sibling, a child… There’s no end to the questions, the shock, the pain. 9 – 11 is a day we will always remember.