story2557.xml

story2557.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

I was in the drive through line at McDonalds when I first heard the news. I walked into work, only to find co-workers huddled around a "watchman" tv. We all huddled around and watched in horror as the second plane hit, the pentagon was hit and then as the towers fell.

Panic then struck because I have several relatives who travel as part of their employment. I frantically called everyone to make sure everyone was safe on the ground. Luckily, all my relatives were safe. As I watched out my window, I began to see huge passenger planes land at our little airport. At the same time, I noticed that the busy 4 lane road in front of our office was errily vacant.

The saddest part of the day was when I returned home and fed my children and got them ready for bed. My youngest son, who was not quite 3, watched the news cast that showed palnes hitting the buildings and then the towers falling. He began to cry, turned to me and wailed, "They fell down Mom". It then struck me that this had hit each and every person that I knew. Including a small little boy who only knew that "they fell down".

-Marianne Marshall
Rockford, IL