Today, I don't have a blog post for you guys.
As you all know, today marked the anniversary of September 11, 2001.
As a transplanted New Yorker who remembers the day vividly, it still makes me emotional to think about. Luckily, I was at home that day. But had it been a week earlier I would have been in the building at the time the planes hit the towers ( I had just finished my first ever summer teaching job in NJ. I walked through the World Trade Center to get to my train).
I remember my roommate's parents calling all the way from Italy asking if I was watching the news. I was trying to sleep in that day so I wasn't. My roommate was already at school and the television was off. I turned it on...it was around 9am, just after the first tower was hit. I watched in total disbelief and was quite honestly terrified. I had only been in the city for 2 years by that point and knew no one but the dancer friends I had made while training. I had no clue what to do. Or what was going to happen. It's a helpless feeling to watch that all by yourself in an empty apartment at 20 years old. So I just sat there, and watched the news, watch the second plane hit the remaining tower. And saw them both go down... and cried. That's all I could do. It really was a terribly painful day. The city came to a stand still. Not only because the subway stopped running and businesses closed up but...the city just got...still.
But in true NY fashion, New Yorkers were able to pick up the pieces and trudge ahead. Although there were some scares left on the city, it was never broken.
So today, I salute all of those who lost their lives, who lost loved ones, those who risked their lives to try to help and those who still risk their lives to keep us safe!!!!
To the heroes!!!!
Hug someone today and let them know how much they mean to you. It's important!!!
xoxo
What a thoughtful text. Even though I am Austrian, I remember that day well and am feeling terribly sorry for all those people and their families. Gott schütze sie.
ReplyDeleteAll the best,
Saperlotte
Your description of the day really puts it in perspective for someone from the West coast without any East coast friends or family who were there that day. None of the endless news articles really made it this REAL for me before. Thank you so much for this post.
ReplyDeleteI hear so many generalised stories on the news (yep, even here in Australia it's a big deal) it really hits home when you tell how that day felt for you.
ReplyDeleteI remember watching it happen live on the news when I lived in Perth with some flatmates (it was in the evening) and we were all like WTF? I don't think any of us got to sleep that night, we knew the world wouldnt be the same place in the morning. If New York/USA wasn't safe - then who was?
So sad - this post totally made me emotional even though I don't have any connection to New York as a city, so to speak. I remember being glued to the news all day, the day this happened and was just so upset. I can't imagine that anyone could have watched the towers collapsing and seen all those poor people meet their death, without crying. Such a tremendously sad time, but so positive to see a city full of people pull together and get through it.
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