Never To Be Forgotten

 It was a regular work day for me; woke up, got ready for work and left for the office. I did not turn on the radio and when I arrived at the office, I opened the door at eight-thirty and went to my desk to begin my day. I was the first one to arrive and before long, two co-workers entered the office. "Did you hear?" They shouted at me. "Did I hear what?"

 "A plane crashed into one of the twin towers in New York!" We rushed into a room with a television and I could not believe what I was seeing. It seemed like an announcement for a new terror movie. Before long there were eight people around the screen, stunned at the news we were hearing. We were told the office would close. I rushed home to watch the rest of the alarming news on my own t.v. set.

The reports were horrible. People jumping from windows, last minute conversations from those caught on floors and unable to get out, fire fighters killed trying to rescue people, another plane hit the Pentagon, hijackers attacked by passengers and all killed, the term "let's roll," became popular, miracle stories of some that made it out alive, and so many people died either on impact, trying to escape the burning towers, or the collapse of the towers. 

I had visited my brother in New York a few years before the attacks so I got to see the twin towers! He had taken me on a tour of Manhattan and when we tried to go up one of the towers at the Trade Center, it was under repair, and we could not go up. But I did see the identical towers standing so tall and proud! 

Yesterday, September 11, 2020, there was a remembrance program at the museum built around the disaster of the attacks. As I watched it, nineteen years later, I still cried. Amazing to hear the stories of the survivors and to see the children, now grown up remembering their parents, relatives or friends. The wall with all the pictures was sad to see and to hear the comments from family who had lost loved ones during that terrorist attack. Barack Obama, Rudy Giuliani, and Andrew Cuomo were some of the speakers and it was good to see all being united in remembering and honoring that tragic day. I learned about the Essay Staircase, also known as the Survivor's Staircase and the tall frame with messages, both at the museum.

It is a day that will never be forgotten.

"If we learn nothing else from this tragedy,

we learn that life is short and there is no

time for hate." 

Sandy Dahl, 

wife of Flight 93 pilot Jason Dahl