story5891.xml

story5891.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-12

My Husband and I moved from New york To New Jersey to be closer to his job at Merril Lynch In Jersey City, which is just a ferry ride to the towers. He would travel on Tuesdays to the towers, on the ferry, for the weekly meetings held by Merril Lynch on the 21st or 27th floor of the north and south towers. On Sunday Sept.9th, the weekend before the 11th, he and I were in Manhatten to see the Broadway show "Rent". My hubsband was in a great mood so he purchased tickets for me the "Phantom of the opera" to see it on 9/11 as a surprise. I remenber taking the ferry across and looking at lower Manhatten looking at the awsome skyline that was truely breathtaking. These two surreal buildings were dominating the skyline. Nowhere could you get a view like this ...Nowhere. I was proud to be a New Yorker.
On the morning of the 11th, my husband took a personal day. I can remember commenting how the day was absolutely perfect. Not a cloud in the sky. A perfect sky blue. On that thought, we decided we were going to spend the day in the city before going to the show. Take in some museums, brunch window shop and what ever the city could offer. I went on line about 8:15am and checked my email. I wanted to see if there were any special events happening in the city. At about 8:40, we get a call on the cell phone from my husbands ex- wife. She is frantic on the phone ..she is telling him to turn on the tv because the world trade center towers were being bombed..... Being BOMBED ??!! we thought we heard her wrong...As we turned on the televison set, the first tower was collapsing.......I instantly began to cry and I think my knees went weak and I dropped to the floor... My husband was speachless.......we didn't know what was happening. I had a strange and sick thought just after that,I said to my self
" Well at least we still have one tower standing"...
The next thing I remember was the 2nd tower collapsing.
we only had a few TV channels that were coming through.. our phone lines could not get through to manhatten. We were calling our friends and relatives to account for them....the 2nd tower began to collapse. I was speachless.. breathless and over come with not just greif but fear. The reports came throgh and that the pentagon had been hit too. I thought this was it. Nostradamous was right! It's world war 3. I had to see it for my self. From my neighborhood, you can see the city. So I left my apt and walked 1 block over to see the sky line that I was just admiring 2 days prior, and saw the smoke filled sky of lower NY. It was one thing to view it on TV, but to actully see it happening before your eyes.....I can't even begin to express those feelings.my husband wonders what if he hadn't taken a personal day what would th outcome be. All the people we knew made it to safety but what they witnessed and told us of the falling bodies and debris coming from above was just too horrible to comprehend. Since 9/11 I feel like I lost a part of my family. not only for all the fellow New Yorkers that were lost , but the buildings had a persona all there own. They were the big brothers of NY. Watching all, being a center focal point, a place for cultural events to take place in the court yard. It was the neucleus of NY. It was one of The symbols for which NY was known for. Everyday I see the city skyline and there is a hole in my heart that aches to see the original skyline of NY. And It hurts to know that the families of so many lost love ones are suffering and struggling to get back to life ....but sometimes its too hard.
One thing always rings in the back of my mind.... would I have been a widow if we didn't buy those theater tickets?