story3029.xml

story3029.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

Hi, my mane is Shiwanda Key. I was driving my boyfriend to work talking about what we were going to do for my birthday, September 13, when we heard on the radia, 9.39FM, that a plane had crashed into one of the towers. We immediately thought that it was an accident, until we heard that another plane crashed into the second tower. We both looked at each other a pronounced that whatever was going on was not going to come to D.C., who would be that stupid to try anygthing. I dropped him off and headed to work when I heard about the Pentagon. You see I had four family members that worked there, My mother, my father, my aunt and uncle. I rushed to be with my sister, we worked at the same place. The only person that was not accounted for was my mother. My dad had just moved his office because he just finished remodeling the new wing of the Pentagon, and my aunt and uncle's office was moved months earlier. I called my mother's office and one picked up the phone. I called her cell phone, it was dead. The sheer terror and pain in my body made me weak. I thought how could I loose her. As my sister and I watched on TV at work the destruction, the tears never stopped flowing. I was praying that I would see her in a footage of the Pentagon, but I couldn't find her. My step father heard and immediately left his office in D.C. and started walking toward the Pentagon the search for my mother. The store I worked for was closing, but I refuse to move, I couldn't. I was to scared to move. I thought about all the people dying, hurt. I thought of where are they going to strike next. I thought how could this happen. Hours went by, and no word. I my heart I knew that she was alive. You see I have a praying family. My father is a pastor of his own church, my uncle pastor's his own church with my aunt, my grandmother is a missionary. So I knew that God was send many angels for my mom. Around 3pm, my mom calls or job and speaks to my sister as if nothing was wrong. She was calm. Someone she knew helped her out of the building and was bringing her home. Her cell phone went dead before she was able to connect to us.

I cherish every moment I spend with my parents. I could have lost them all. My father help rebuild the Pentagon, coming home telling the stories of how the construction is coming, how huge the hole is in the Pentagon. My father said that even though this was a horrible ordeal, many would have been lost. He said if it was not for the grace of God and that plane hit another part of the Pentagon, many would have been killed, the whole building except the newly renovated part would have been destroyed. The plane would have reached the center of the pentagon and exploded, causing a chain reaction, spreading the fire aroung the ring. People ask, where was our God when everything happened. He was here, becuse if he wasn't, Sept. 11 would have been much worse.

As I got in my car today, going to work, I started crying because I didn't tell my mom or dad that I loved them. It brought back the fear and pain of a year ago. Sometimes I feel shelfish is being happy that my family was spared, and so sad for others that lost. I feel like this world is my family, and I have lost many brothers and sisters out there. As I watch the flags outside of my building blow in the wind, I say, thank you God, and I pray that the healing for me and others will soon come to pass, and we will be able to cherish even more our and others lives and the freedom we have that God has given our great nation.