I ran to the phone to call my Dad in NJ and tell him to stay home. He was in his 80's and drove every day to Port Newark which is right next to Newark Airport. I knew traffic would be horrendous and didn't want him caught in the massive traffic jam. He had heard the news and had already decided to stay home.
I guess like most Americans I stayed glued to the television for many days. On the one year anniversary of 9/11 the Houston Chronicle published a special section and something I wrote was chosen to be included. The yellow newspaper clipping still hangs on my refrigerator door.
One year after 9/11 I wrote that my heart would beat faster every time there was a news bulletin on television and that I would say a silent prayer every time a plane flew overhead. Sometimes my heart still does beat a little faster when there's a news bulletin, but I no longer say my silent prayer for every plane that flies over. You have no idea how many planes are in the sky until you attempt such a project, but for a while I felt like I had to say a prayer to keep those planes up in the air. I know it sounds silly now, but that's how the trauma of 9/11 affected me. To be honest now I don't even notice the planes in the sky most of the time, but after 9/11 I heard every single one.
In 2004 my son and I went to NJ to see my Dad. We took a quick trip into NYC one day. I really didn't want to see the World Trade Center site, but somehow we ended up on a subway from Hoboken that took us into the World Trade Center subway station that had just recently reopened. We crossed the street and I took this picture.
Thanks for giving us a peek into your life on that day. We must always remember....
ReplyDeleteI too remember that day very well. I was asleep and my Granny called to tell me about it. She was concerned that it was a plane that my husband was on. Thankfully it wasn't as he had left for a business trip to Texas the day before. I quickly got up and turned on my tv. About that time was when I seen the second plane crash into the World Trade Center Building. I was truly horrified. I couldn't stop crying. My daughter was only 4 at the time. It was hard for her to see it also as she knew that her Daddy had just left on a plane the day before. I assured her that he was fine. We even called him to let him know what was going on. My husband ended up driving home from Texas to West Virginia after his work was done. Luckily for him he had already arranged for a rental car. People were being stranded at places because all air travel had been shut down and all of the rental cars were taken. He took 2 days to get home. It took me at least 2 years before I felt a little more at ease over him traveling by plane. It does still scare me at times even today. Now that he has a cell phone with all the bells and whistles he will either call me or text me when he gets to his stops along the way as he is traveling.
ReplyDeleteA month later our beloved 14 yr old chihuahua named Spunky passed away. Because I kept telling my daughter that the people in the plane were in Heaven she thought that we could take a plane to Heaven to visit Spunky.
Hugs,
Angela
A gruesome day. We always need to remember.
ReplyDeleteThanks for honoring 9-11 and your continued prayers Betty. I hope that we never foget, but that we turn this sad day into a day of service so that we can show more love and kindness to the world. I think that would truly honor those that were lost.
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