"We Will Never Forget" has become a theme every 9/11 since the tragedy happened 13 years ago. I saw it posted on Facebook a least a dozen times this past 9/11. It evokes so many memories and emotions from that horrible day...the live pictures of it unfolding right in front of our eyes. The unbelievable sights we were seeing, the smoke billowing out of both buildings, the unthinkable sheer horror of seeing one building crumble to the ground and then the other, the ash covering everything and everyone...just the complete shock of it all. I was glued to the TV all day, as I know many Americans were. We were frozen in our tracks...mesmerized and haunted by what we were seeing.
How could this happen? What was happening? What was coming next? The panic, the concern, the initial sense of helplessness. We all felt it. We all know exactly where we were when we heard the news or saw the pictures. I had just come back from an early morning run when I walked in the door, turned on Good Morning America and within 10 minutes of walking back in the door tragedy had struck! That quickly...in an instant...the world had changed. I was stopped in my tracks in my apartment...just standing there and not moving for several minutes. Then I sat for the rest of the day with a huge numbing, gut wrenching, sad feeling. It lingered with me all day. The world had stopped except for what I was seeing on TV...those people...all those poor innocent people. Tears.
Every year since it seems like a lifetime ago, but it conjures up all those images and feelings all over again. I had traveled to New York City for the first time earlier in 2001, March I believe, and even went to the top of the Empire State building to take pictures of the city...which included several pictures of the Twin Towers standing tall above some low hanging clouds. It's strange to look at those pictures now.
And then my first trip back to New York City after 9/11 happened in October of 2002. I was there for a work event and unbeknownst to me the hotel I booked was directly across the street from Ground Zero. There it stood...just feet away from me...walking the same streets as all of those people running away from the area only a year ago. I remember there being a lot of activity down by Ground Zero while I was there because Prince Charles was coming into town and was going to go down to Ground Zero to visit the area. It was sad and a little eerie to be walking around that area during that time.
But, I also remember all the American flags hanging on doorsteps across America after 9/11. It's been that solidarity, that strength that has led us through those difficult days. And it's been our faith in humanity, in one another to rebuild, to persevere and to rise above the ashes. It's who we are and why this is the best country to live in. We are one!
Blessings to all those families, friends, first responders and military personnel who were directly affected by 9/11. We are all with you and we 'will never forget!'
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