story1459.xml

story1459.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-08-25

Shortly after my father passed away, I impulsively quit my job as a welfare fraud investigator. So, I was home on that most horrific of all days. My fianc?, who works evenings, was downstairs watching the Today Show. Suddenly, I was interrupted from my chores by his screaming that a plane had just crashed into one of the World Trade Center towers. I ran downstairs and the two of us were standing about a foot from the television. We witnessed, live on television, the second plane hitting the other tower. Mark, a Marine Corps veteran, looked at me and said, "we've just been attacked". We sat
there, watching the coverage and all I could say was, "what about all those people?" I could not imagine such horror and that was before the attack on the Pentagon, before flight 93 was heroically brought down in Shanksville, PA., and before the Twin Towers collapsed. I knew then that our world was forever changed. After watching the TV coverage (and crying) for awhile, I called my mother. I then learned that one of my brothers flew out of Boston around 8:00 A.M. that morning. It would be a few agonizing hours before we knew he was alright. Greg's flight was forced to land in Peoria, IL. Returning to Ohio proved to be quite a task for him. He told me that he says a prayer before each flight but that on 9/11, his prayer was, for reasons unknown to him at the time, a psalm. He also said he didn't think he ever knew that psalm by heart. Later, my family would worry some more. My brother, Chris, is a captain in the U.S. Navy and could have been at the Pentagon that day as he is currently working in Washington D.C. I feel truly blessed that both my brothers are alive and well! My heart still aches for all those people who lost loved ones on that awful day. September 11 is Mark's birthday. He and his twin brother, Mike, also a Marine Corps veteran, will never again celebrate their birthdays in the ways they have in years past. Mark had waited until the last minute to re-new his driver's license. While we were at the license bureau, I went outside to call my mom again to see if she had heard anything about my brothers. I kept seeing planes above and only later realized that it was because nationwide, pilots in the sky were ordered to land at the nearest, available airport and we are very close to the Akron/Canton Airport. I learned later that it was only about five planes which were forced to land at Akron/Canton Airport, but at the time, it seemed like a lot more. I cannot imagine what it must be like for those in New York, Washington, Pennsylvania and for the loved ones of all those aboard the fated flights, to hear the roar of an airplane overhead. An airplane flying in a clear blue sky will forever bring on the same flood of emotions, for the skies here that day were just as blue. Even a clear blue sky, in and of itself, now takes on new meaning for me. For days after the attack, I felt incredible grief, anger and even guilt. I
questioned God even as I prayed for the souls lost, prayed that survivors be found, and prayed for an end to hatred and evil, especially of this magnitude. I have a brilliant sixteen-year old daughter and I wish she did not have to live in a world where such evil is possible. In the days following our worst moments, for the most part, we saw the very best of humanity, the very best of America. We also saw that some people will try to profit from even the most evil of deeds. Right here, in N. Canton, OH., a man lied, saying he lost a loved one in NYC. He was caught and hopefully, the countless donations he received from generous co-workers were re-paid. We are still the greatest nation in the world. Our collective good will overcome any challenge to beset our nation. We are, after all, the UNITED States of America and..., may God bless us all!