story7253.xml

story7253.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-13

As we've relived the tragedy of one year ago,the haunting pictures keep replaying in our minds. My wife and I were having breakfast,planning on taking a drive to a shopping center. My cellphone rang and it was a friend from New York. He asked if we were watching the news about the plane(supposedly a Cessena) that crashed into the Trade Center. As a former New Yorker who worked downtown, I immediately went home to watch CNN. I knew a number of people who worked in the North Tower and was horrified to see the events unfolding. As we began to call family in New York,my suspicions were confirmed as the second plane hit! Now the realization that our "home" was under attack began to sink in! My wife became ill watching the Towers burn and my thoughts turned to my kids. I wondered if they were aware of the tragedy and,if so, how they were handling it. At that moment, my daughter called from her phone and said the school was having an assembly to talk to the students. She said my son was across the auditorium and he wanted to speak to me immediately. I decided to go to their school and bring them home. Upon arrival, cars were lined up all over school grounds with parents rushing in to get their kids. It was chaotic at the school trying to find my children and get out quickly. We found my daughter,who was distraught,but no sign of my son. Suddenly, he appears,frantic and white as a ghost. His first question was to inquire about the friend who called me,thinking he was in the Towers. When I told him that my friend had moved uptown, he began to cry as he thought the worst!! We went home to spend the remainder of the day watching the news,silently grieving for those who were lost. One of those lost was a gentleman I worked with for a short period of time.The day after Thanksgiving 1987, I brought my daughter into work and she spent most of the day on his lap. He made her a ball out of rubber bands and attended to her as if she were his own. She's 18 now, and on a recent trip to Ground Zero,saw his name on a poster at St.Matthews. The realization of who he was and remembering the rubberband ball was very emotional for her. I hope the President was right when he said these people didn't die in vain. It would be a tragedy compounded if the scum who did this aren't found and killed!! Hopefully our country will recover and the family and friends of those lost will find some solace in the knowledge that their loved ones will never be forgotten!!