Teacher's Pet Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 I passed out after a late Monday night waiting tables at the Applebees I worked at. I was so thankful that I had the next day off, since my feet were killing me. I set my alarm clock for noon, so I could get some much-needed sleep. At about 8:45, my phone rang. It was Billy, a college student whom I was mentoring in comedy. "DUDE," he said, "PUT ON YOUR F'ING TELEVISION!" I rolled over and grabbed my remote. I turned on the TV to see some horrible disaster film about a plane flying into....... This wasn't a movie. What I witnessed over the next 2 hours has haunted my heart and mind ever since. I sat glued to the TV. New York City, the city of my birth, the city of my career, the city I love with all my heart, was on fire. It wasn't just the Twin Towers. It was NEW YORK CITY, the greatest city on Earth, not on fire, but crying for help. While the skies above were filled with acrid smoke and flame, it's streets were strewn with more than just bits of debris and broken glass, but people. People covered in dust, glass, and blood. Not only their own blood, but the blood of others as they rallied to help carry the injured and dead from the site. I watched in horror as ambulances began carting away people in business suits, who, just a few minutes earlier, were on their way to earn a buck to save up for college tuition for their kids, and a good home for their families. They were living the American Dream, which, on national television, was quickly turning into the American Nightmare. "...it is apparent that The United States is under attack," said the newscaster. You could hear the fear and shock in the voice of the commentator. Then, the unthinkable happened. As millions of people stared in horror at their TV screens, the Twin Towers came crumbling down, one at a time. As the South Tower collapsed, you could almost hear the first Tower cry, crying as if it was trying to save it's twin brother. As the smoke began to clear, you could almost see the other Tower losing it's own will to live, and shortly followed in it's own death. Tears began streaming down my face as I watched the drama unfold. But they weren't MY tears. They were America's tears, as at that moment, we all cried as a nation. How? Why? Who? No one could answer these questions yet. For those brief moments, America was dying. We were all witnesses to the greatest tragedy this country has ever faced. But this was different, too. It wasn't a military base being bombed. It wasn't an embassy being attacked. It was a pair of office buildings. "They", whomever "they" were, were not attacking our troops. They were attacking US. Lawyers. Accountants. Bankers. Janitors. Secretaries. Police Officers. Fire Fighters. Whites. Blacks. Heterosexuals. Homosexuals. Asians. Middle Easterners. Hispanics. Jews. Christians. Athiests. Muslims. Republicans. Democrats. Young. Old. Mothers. Fathers. Sisters. Brothers. Children. Friends. Wives. Husbands. Lovers. All gone in the blink of an eye. While their actual deaths were, for the most part, swift, one can only cringe at the horror going on inside the buildings as these poor souls tried to escape, and at the fate of the rescue workers going IN the buildings to find survivors. I was motionless for at least 3 hours as they replayed the impact of the hijacked planes over and over on TV. I remember snapping out of it, and then I realized something... My mother works in Manhattan. I remember trembling as I picked up the phone to call her office. "...all circuits are busy...please try again..." I tried. And tried. And tried. And then I threw my phone on the ground and broke down crying. WHERE THE HELL IS MY MOTHER? I quickly logged on to the Internet to see if there were any new details. My email box was brimming with emails from long distance friends who know I live near, and sometimes work in NYC. Begging me to call/email them to let them know I'm ok. I'm here, but I'm not ok. Not until I find my mother. I continued to try to call my mother into the afternoon. At about 2pm, I got through. She was fine. Her office was far from the WTC, but just knowing she was in NYC at the time was enough to send me into panic. She told me she was going to be coming home as soon as any transportation back to New Jersey was available. At this point, I needed some fresh air, so I went outside, but there was no fresh air to be found. The wind had carried the scent of burning metal, dead bodies, and broken dreams across the Hudson River, and into my suburban New Jersey neighborhood, just about 3 miles in a straight line from Ground Zero. Never before have I experienced a scent so horrible, both in smell, and in meaning. I was breathing in death, destruction, and an impending war..... At about 7pm, my mother called me to meet her near the George Washington Bridge. She was able to get a ride to the Bridge from someone in her office building, and then was able to take a bus home. I remember driving to the bus stop, and seeing dozens of people, still in shock, waiting to pick up their loved ones. When I saw my mother, I broke down crying as she got in my car, and kissed and hugged me as she cried. As soon as we got home, she turned on the TV. She had still not seen the actual attack, as most of us did in the morning. Before I could tell her maybe she shouldn't see it..... they replayed it yet again. My mother turned white as the planes exploded against the buildings. She began to hyperventilate, so I had to calm her down. She spent the next couple of hours describing what happened from her point of view, though her office is far from the WTC, they could FEEL it happening. Eventually, I got her to relax and go to sleep. I didn't. I was up all night answering emails from concerned friends, reading Internet articles with new information, watching press conferences on TV, and just wondering WHY. Who hated my beautiful birth place so much as to want to destroy it? The answers came soon enough. The next morning I picked up the newspaper. It's headline: ACT OF WAR - WORLD TRADE CENTER DESTROYED; MANY DEAD" At this point, we know the attacks were conducted by Middle Easterners. I paid for my paper, and could see the sadness in the eyes of the Middle Eastern man who operated the 7-11. I could see in his eyes that even though he may share a heritage with the terrorists, he wasn't one of them. He was here for the same reason the Irish, the Italian, the Russian, and the millions of others emigrated to this country. Like so many others, to have a better life, but for 3,000 people, it was all over. Over for them, and for them, we grieve, and pledge our vengeance as a nation. But not over for us. We must never forget 9/11. This country affords it's people every opportunity in the world, sometimes even when we don't deserve it. We are not a perfect country. We have high taxes, pollution, crime, disease, poverty, and hunger, just like any other nation. But we have something else - the spirit to fight back against all odds. We've done it so many times before. More than ever, we need to do it again. Do yourself a favor, today, and every day. THANK a policeman. THANK a firefighter. HUG a neighbor. TELL the one you love how much they mean to you. SAY you're sorry, no matter how petty the squabble. ACCEPT someone else's apology. But never, and I mean NEVER, forget the horrors of 9/11, or the bravery of it's heroes, and the sacrifices of those who are in harms way as we speak, fighting to make sure it NEVER happens again. Don't HATE your President. Don't HATE his political rivals. HATE our enemies. And not "those people" in general, but those who specifically want to cause death and destruction to Americans, for they didn't single out any one group when they attacked us. They attacked us as a NATION. We need to fight back as one, too. God Bless America. -tp never forget. never forgive.
AriaIncognito Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 Ditto to what Joey said. May everyone take a moment out of their day today, and every day, to thank God that they weren't one of the ones that lost their lives that day, or during this horrendous war. Drive with your headlights on today, in remembrance of those who cannot.
StaringContest Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 Not to take away from the original tragedy, but I think we should all also remember the secondary tragedy of this event, which is that many of those heroic people who didn't hesitate to rush to help at the WTC are now suffering from horrible diseases, including various cancers, because of the toxins in the air (asbestos, dioxine, benezine). Many policemen and firefighters spent months in the the polluted air without protection and had assurances by officials that it was safe to be there. I don't like to get involved in the squabbling of politics or rally for causes, but the one thing I think is important is that Americans push the government to ensure that funding is permanently established to provided those heroes with adequate health care as well as the people who are now sick because they went to work in the area after being told it was safe. It would yet another tragedy if we turned our backs on the heroes of 9/11. If you don't know what I'm talking about, just google it.
AriaIncognito Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 Not to take away from the original tragedy, but I think we should all also remember the secondary tragedy of this event, which is that many of those heroic people who didn't hesitate to rush to help at the WTC are now suffering from horrible diseases, including various cancers, because of the toxins in the air (asbestos, dioxine, benezine). Many policemen and firefighters spent months in the the polluted air without protection and had assurances by officials that it was safe to be there. I don't like to get involved in the squabbling of politics or rally for causes, but the one thing I think is important is that Americans push the government to ensure that funding is permanently established to provided those heroes with adequate health care as well as the people who are now sick because they went to work in the area after being told it was safe. It would yet another tragedy if we turned our backs on the heroes of 9/11. If you don't know what I'm talking about, just google it. Definitely. I totally agree with you.
JamesM Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 TP, well said, and it is worth reposting. Like almost every American, I can also remember where I was, what I was thinking before and after. I can remember hearing that a plane went into the tower and thinking that "so what, some pilot lost control?" The enormity of it did not hit until I went home for lunch and saw the news. Only then did I realize what was happening. I purchased some dvds that show all of the activites of that day, but I know that like almost every year, I cannot still bear to watch them anymore. The fear and horror is still too real. So many lives lost for what purpose?
quankanne Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 So many lives lost for what purpose? so that some whacked-out nut could make his "point." I still can't watch footage of the attacks, not because of the horror and devastation, but because of the overkill by broadcast media. You don't have to show those kinds of things incessantly just to illustrate a point … I remember driving into work, the weather was glorious and I was thinking, "Man, today'd be a great day to play hookey." I didn't have the radio on during the short drive to work, so I wasn't aware of anything when I walked into the office. the schools superintendent walked back to our offices and said that we'd be holding a prayer service in the chapel in about 20 minutes, and I still didn't understand why. then my husband called, saying that WWIII just broke out. I thought it was an exaggerated figure of speech (something he excels at), but then he told me to go on line, that some nut case flew into the Twin Towers in New York. Scrolling through the CNN site, then a bit later during the prayer service, I felt so damned guilty for wanting to take the day off just to play in the sunshine when so many people had died just because some whacked-out nutcase had a "point" to make … today my prayer is for the victims of this tragedy, for the ones who lost their lives, for the ones who lost loved ones and friends, for the ones who stayed behind to clean up the mess and put themselves at great health risk. God bless them all, and may we never have to witness such a great act of hate again.
Art_Critic Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 Thanks for posting this thread TP.... today my prayer is for the victims of this tragedy, for the ones who lost their lives, for the ones who lost loved ones and friends, for the ones who stayed behind to clean up the mess and put themselves at great health risk. God bless them all, and may we never have to witness such a great act of hate again. Well said Quank
dropdeadlegs Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 The memory is so fresh that it is hard to believe it has been 6 years. I certainly will never forget that Tuesday morning, one that started out like so many others. I will drive with headlights ablaze today. I hung a flag as soon as I could find one, which was no easy task in the days following the attacks, and have continued to show my patriotism every day since. It's getting to be time to hang a new one, mine has gotten quite faded. I will thank policemen, a firemen, and members of our troops at the first opportunity to do so. My heart goes out to all who perished, their loved ones, and those who are still suffering today from associated problems. I am thousands of miles from NYC, but on that fateful day, my heart was in NYC, a place I adore. I was also in DC and in a field in PA. I've never been so frightened in my life.
Touche Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 I'll never forget the day. I was working then. My boss was on line and told me about it. It just didn't compute. Plane..Twin Towers? It was so strange. I've never been told something that just didn't compute at all. It just wouldn't register. I thought someone sent her some stupid email joke or something. We turned the office tv on and I couldn't believe it. I was stunned..just shocked. I had to go out for a smoke and then I noticed all the office workers (smokers and non-smokers) spilling out of their offices to congregate outside. It seems like people needed others to talk to about this. Someone said this was just how it was when Pearl Harbor was attacked. They never forgot. It was an eery and scary day. Our son (11) taped a note to the back of his shirt this morning saying "We will never forget." I felt personally attacked on that day. NYC is the city of my birth too. My hometown. How dare they do that to my people...our people. Great post TP.
AriaIncognito Posted September 11, 2007 Posted September 11, 2007 I found it to be almost fitting that when I got up today it was raining here in the NYC metro area. As if the heavens are weeping along with us. I can't attend a memorial tonight like I usually do, so this morning I made it a point to turn on the tv and listen to the reading of the names until I left for work. 6 years ago seems like just yesterday. I wrote something a few days after the attacks if you want to read... http://www.doitrockapella.com/candle.html
Author Teacher's Pet Posted September 12, 2007 Author Posted September 12, 2007 I just stood outside my apartment for the last hour watching my town's memorial service. It was beautiful. I live in a town of about 13,000 people, not quite enough to make us a "major city", being only 3 miles from a city of 8 million...... But today, I saw my little suburban NJ town stand up for a nation of millions. Right outside my window (I live on a main road), there is a sea of people from all walks of live gathered by the American Legion Hall across the street from me observing the ceremony. Police officers from 2 towns standing in formation not 50 feet from my window. Children, many of them the children of immigrants are playing in the streets, while some kids are playing catch in a nearby parking lot. I was smiling as I was watching them, knowing that the innocence of youth is protecting them from the full realization that they are growing up in a dangerous world..... There as a moment of silence, followed by a lone violin playing the Ave Maria......followed by a reading of the names of the 6 residents of my tiny, unknown town (though my town IS mentioned in a song, believe it or not) who lost their lives 6 years ago today at the hands of cowards. I stood against the side of my building, choked up with tears, and I could see them in the eyes of some of the police officers nearby. Things like this make you put things in life in perspective. I'm alive. I have my freedom, a decent job (even though I made only $34 today....thanks Bin Laden, you douchebag), my mother, and of course, all my wonderful friends. I have everything (well, ALMOST) that I really want in life, so yes, I am living "The Dream". Welcome to America. This is my country. This is me. -tp Now let's kick some ass, Dubya
mike5770 Posted September 13, 2007 Posted September 13, 2007 You know after reading that post and thinking about 9/11 all day, it puts all of this stuff we are sad about into perspective. I know exes can drive us wild(me included). But imagine being in the 106th floor of the north tower of the wtc after that scumbag Mohammed Atta flew AA flight 11 under you. I know I would probably get over the ex pretty damn fast if I was trying to survive. It would put everything into perspective very fast. We have a lot to be grateful for even if it does not feel like it because the ex is screwing some other guy in the bar. We are alive and for the most part healthy, we owe it to those who died to live life to the fullest and maybe not take things so seriously with exes. I know one thing, I can get over a girlfriend or a crush, but 9/11 is something I will NEVER get over. It gets a little easier but I remember those planes like they were yesterday. A former co worker who worked for Cantor Fitzgerald died that day, and I probably know more if I looked at the victim list. Life is all about perspective.
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