After a day of reflection
Of course I noticed yesterday was the seventh anniversary of Sept. 11, but I wanted to wait an entire day before posting to really let it sink in. I decided the best way to truly reflect is to share, therefore, I’ll share my experience, and if anyone would like to share their’s, they’re more than welcome:
It was shortly after 8:45 a.m., I was a senior walking from gym class to early childhood development. Word spread the first plane had struck one of the twin towers. At this point, I, along with every one else at the time, didn’t think it was an attack, more just a pilot seriously off track. But less than 15 minutes, when the second plane hit, the mood completely changed as teachers immediately began turning on classroom televisions.
The rest of the day was somewhat of a blur. The hallways were silent except for the distant sounds of radios and televisions detailing the grim accounts. Another had hit the Pentagon, and a plane that was highjacked crashed in Pennsylvania.
Living in a somewhat commuter town, fellow friends and students freaked out wondering where their parents, who worked in New York were. By early afternoon smoke wafted over the football field.
Toward the end of the day, the principle got over the loudspeaker, like he did at the end of every day, only this time it wasn’t to say “school’s dismissed.” No this time, words like the entire east coast under terroristic attack (no one still new what was going on) and praying we would all return home safely were heard instead.
I got in my truck and went home to glue my eyes to the television before heading to work. Turns out no one stopped watching the news as Dominos was the busiest it had been in a while.
Even know, typing the memories from that day, I get tears in my eyes and goosebumps up my arms. The emotion and terror from that day, is actually even too much for this writer to describe.
However, what I can describe is the change in attitude everyone felt. Yes, even in New Jersey, for the next couple of week’s, people stopped cutting you off for driving to slow, someone would hold the door a little longer for another and the workers at Dunkin Donuts looked you in the eye when you made a purchase.
My friends and I actually made a giant painted board of an American flag that we placed in the parking lot of said Dunkin Donuts. Every night, for weeks, we would go down and light all the candles placed around the base. On the back of the board was a marker for people to share their thoughts.
In those weeks I saw firefighters and first aid workers coming back from Ground Zero crying as they drank their coffee sharing stories. Needless to say, many flowers were left and the entire back of the board was filled with names and messages from people we have never met before.
And even know, seven years later, I still remember all the stories, all the people and how much we all stuck together.
I heard about it on the radio on my way to work in the car. I thought something similar after the first plane hit – an air traffic controller must have really messed up. We kept the TV on all day at work, checking in on our breaks and sharing information as it was reported. I began making red, white and blue ribbon pins for people to wear and raised money for a 911 charity. I made 3 big batches before I could no longer find red, white and blue ribbon to buy after I sold all the pins. So many others were doing the same thing. I wore my pin daily for a long time as did many others.