story4037.xml

story4037.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

That's where I was when the first plane hit. I heard the whining of its engines as it decended and slowed so that it may hit its mark. I remember the fear that I felt and the New Yorker(by address) in me saying "You're too cool to run and look up. Everything's fine-you're afraid of your own shadow.". It's true. I was afraid of everything in this city of fear and threat. So I ask the girl watching next to me what it looked like coming down.She said that it went right over the Washington Square arch. I called my husband, who was on location in Chicago, and told him that the strangest thing just happened. Then I walked to work and tried to pretend that everything was ok. 15 minutes later I heard screams and gasps from the crowd on Fifth Avenue. I turned around to watch the second tower explode. Glass like diamonds shining in the sky and falling like rain. It was so beautiful, it was sickening. I called my husband again. He told me, all the way from Chicago, that it was a second plane. At that point, I began to hyperventilate and made my way to the office. I'd only been at the job for a week. We were sent home if we felt safe to go. Otherwise, we could stay. I posted my name and address if anyone needed a place to stay and left to seek comfort with friends. Friends, Bologna and Cheese sandwiches and reruns of "Sex and the City" could never be more blessed. Now that I've seen what I was afraid of, I'm no longer so afraid. It keeps going through my head: What doesn't kill us truly does make us stronger.