story5397.xml

story5397.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

I was sitting at my desk at a local Third Party Administrator, paying medical claims, listening to National Public Radio. They broke in saying that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. I went on working, not realizing that those planes were full of people, helpless to what was happening to them. Then when the second plane hit, and the news stations started reporting that these were commercial air planes, filled with people, and jet fuel, I began to worry. Not only for those on the planes, in the towers, but for my husband who was stationed at Hunter Army Airfield with the United States Army. His was a rapid deployment unit and I knew that if things got worse, he would soon be in harms way as well. As an Army wife, these are things you come to get used to whenever things start to heat up in the world, but this was different. This was here, and now. Also, the terrorists seemed to be moving down the east coast, New York, the Pentagon, and now what was next.

As I sit here, one year later, tears in my eyes at every song, every flag, every picture, my heart breaks with every breath. I know that the gates of heaven were wide open that day, welcoming every new angel. I know that my story is a small one, but I know that we all have a one.

I am so proud of the way the country has changed, come together, bonded. I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!!!!