I posted this in 2006. I just added the video.
I'll never forget.
I was still in bed, trying to catch a few more winks before I had to get up and take the wildchild to school. My phone rang. Who could be calling so early in the morning? It was a friend. I met her at the other end of town and she drove her son and my daughter to school. She said he son wasn't going to school that day. Had I turned on the TV yet? No, I hadn't. "It's bad" she said. What? What happened? Something is going on in NY. Turn on your TV. Ok. Thanks for telling me.
I reached for the night stand for the remote. Bossman asks, "what's up?" D just said something is going on in NY and I should turn on the TV.
There is was. A plane had hit one of the towers. I didn't want to look, but I couldn't look away. Should I take my daughter to school? We decided yes, this was too much for a child to watch, and by then, we knew it was the only thing that would be watched on that day.
Right before I left to take her to school, a second plane hit. It was just too much. I got in the car and headed off for the 30 min drive to her school.
In the car I didn't want to turn on the radio. I knew it would be bad. My daughter was only in the 6th grade at the time. She wanted to know what was going on. I told her there was a plane accident in NY. At the time, I didn't know that one of the towers had fallen. I didn't know that terrorist had attacked our country. I didn't know.
At the time, my daughter was going to a private christian school. I knew that whatever was happening, would be taken into consideration at the school. Although I had strong feeling that I wanted to keep my daughter close to me. I knew my daughter would be in good hands.
After dropping my daughter off at school, I turned the radio on. It was then that I found out that one of the towers had fallen. I switched the radio off. I couldn't understand what was happening, but I wanted to get home. I needed to get home to my husband and my 3 year old son. My daughter was safe, I knew that, but I almost turned around to take her home. I didn't turn around, because I knew this would be bad and I didn't want my daughter to see me upset. So I went home.
My son was watching Blue's clues in the bedroom and Bossman was glued to the TV in the living room. I got home in time to see the second tower fall. I went in the bathroom and cried.
The rest of the story doesn't need to be told. I'm sure everyone has a similar story to share. It's a day that will forever be etched in our hearts and our minds.
I'll never forget.
God Bless America!
How strange, I was the 6th grade teacher at that time. I hope I helped and sheldered my children that day. I know we watched TV, we talked together, we prayed - no prayer in school seemed to be forgotten for the day.
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I was at work, and people went into the training room to watch on TV. Shocking. And the sky was SO blue that day.
ReplyDeleteCanada took in thousands of airline passengers after the US closed the skies to planes. Yet that night on TV Bush specifically omitted us from his list of countries who helped out in time of need.
Hello, we're right here. Look up. Look waaaaaay up.
Hugs,
Hermione
Being only 30 minutes from the DC-pentagon side of this i remember it very well. Virginia went under a state of emergency and schools closed..and stayed closed the following day. It was an eerie quiet outside...just neighbors talking about those terrible events. One of the few noises we heard in the sky was Air Force one literally flying over us and the sirens from pretty much every fire-rescue dept. within a couple hours of DC driving down the interstate headed to the pentagon.
ReplyDeleteIt's a day I think everyone will remember Grace.
ReplyDeleteWe were at work, heard people talking in the corridor about a plane crashing into a building in NY, nobody knew anything else. Later when we got home, we turned the tv on and saw how bad it was, you know we couldn't take our eyes of the tv for the rest of the evening. I was in tears watching.
It also showed the moment when Bush was told the news, he was a at school.
A day nobody should ever forget.
Love.
Ronnie
xx
Grace, I don't think any of us who saw it will forget.
ReplyDeleteA truly traumatic moment not just for the U S but for the free world.
Love and warm,
Paul.
President Bush had been at a local elementary school nearby, doing a reading program when it happened. He did the press conference there. I didn't know anything had happened until all of a sudden all the roads were blocked and his vehicle and a decoy went flying by.
ReplyDeleteI had helped out ad daughters school and then had gone home. I was between teaching jobs at the time. I went to older daughter's middle school to help out.
I was watching TV, and a newsflash came on, that a plane had crashed into one of the twin towers. It looked so odd... I remember thinking in anger, how the F*** did the pilot not SEE the building??? Was he asleep? Was the auto pilot on? This is UNBELIEVEABLE!! At that point, we assumed it was a dreadful accident...Then, another plane came into the picture... I thought, OH, MY GOSHHHH, I heard the announcer say, "how irresponsible, flying by that close to take a look!!!!" and a split second later, realising that the front of the plane had "gone past" the front of the building, but not appeared the other side....
ReplyDeletewhich meant, this was no dreadful accident, but worse, it was terrorism on a grander scale than ever before known....
I stood in shock, unable to speak, tears pouring down my face. This was not an act of terrorism on America, it was an act of terrorism on humanity.
Hugs n love, Daisy xxxxxxxxxxxx
Some things are never forgotten. I remember the day and always will.
ReplyDeleteMy sister lives and works in NYC, she was watching it happen from the window of her office and called me early in the morning here in CA, we were still in bed. I didn't understand what she was trying to tell me, I was too groggy, until she said, "I think we're under attack". I yelped, "Holy shit! New York is under *attack*?!" At that, Dan jumped up to turn on the TV and I told my sister I'd call her back.
ReplyDeleteDidn't hear from her for two days. I was kicking myself later for hanging up like; no phone service in or out of NY for days after that. Clogged.
Dan's sister's husband B's company building was across the street from the World Trade Center. they were in a meeting. He saw the first plane hit out of the corner of his eye and thought..."Um...am I going crazy?" When the second plane hit, he bailed along with most of the other people at the meeting. The meeting head was urging everyone to stay but B said later he was thinking, "Fuuuuck that".
He had to walk most of the way home to NJ; along with hundreds (thousands?) of other people.
We also couldn't get hold of them for days.
Very stressful times, glad they weren't hurt, sorry for the ones that were. :(
Not only that, but now flying commercial airlines is a huge pain in the ass as a result. I haaaate terrorists, they do not help their cause and only kill and harm innocents. Hate them with a passion.
Greg was supposed to be in the Twin Towers at a meeting that morning.....
ReplyDeleteI was at work (in England- about six hours ahead) and at the end of the day one of the cleaners came and told us what had happened.
ReplyDeleteIt was so hard to comprehend what she was saying, so difficult to grasp the horror - more so when we turned on the news and watched in silence.
We understand the fear and destruction of terrorism and I hope you felt the strength of compassion and concern that we had and continue to have for your country and your people suffering such an abhorrent attack.
Your country and your people are so strong and brave - terrorists are powerless against such people, no matter what attrocities the terrorists carry out.
We send our love and our people to work together to overcome terror and hate.
My dad was on a first responder team dispatched to the pentagon on Sept 12 to help with the search efforts. Looking at the pictures this many years later still gives me goose bumps.
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