I know everyone is doing it, but I want to say a few words about 9/11.I still remember that clear morning. It was my first semester of college and I only had one class on Tuesdays, which wasn't until 11 AM. Tuesdays were my sleep in morning. My roommate, Jim, was an athlete (had a crush on him, buts that's a story for another day) and he got up early to work out on Tuesday mornings.
Blissfully asleep, I am awakened by Jim practically breaking the door down shouting "we're being attacked!" I tended to be the calmer head between us, and still annoyed at being awakened I asked him, "what the hell are you talking about"
He said that he saw on the TVs in the gym that a plane had crashed into the world trade center. Not being one to jump to conclusions, I suggested that it was probably just a tragic accident. Then he told me about the second plane. We turned on the TV in the dorm room just in time to learn about the pentagon.
It was a terrible day. Luckily, I was very fortunate. I didn't know anyone in Manhattan, and no one my parents knew were killed or even injured. But even so, I won't ever forget that.
By the way, I chose a picture of a memorial for flight 93 because the passengers on that flight are my heroes. Just typing this makes me tear up.
1 comment:
I was sitting in a meeting in Dresden, Germany, which I always thought was ironic. We got the news at 4:30 in the afternoon. By that time, both towers and the Pentagon had been hit, and Flight 93 was on its way to the White House. My German counterpart ran out of the room, I thought to get a radio or portable TV, but she came back a few minutes later saying how relieved she was that she had been able to get hold of her stock broker before he left his office.
Afterward, I stepped out for some air and ran into Herr Meinart, the man responsible for the factory we were building. He was well over 60 and only 5'5", and had lived through the bombings in 1945. He had to stand on tip-toe to throw his arms around my neck. He whispered in my ear, "We know what it's like to be bombed." I cried and cried while he stood there and hugged me.
Post a Comment