story1018.xml

story1018.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-08-14

As the whole world changed on that doomed-filled day, September 11th marked a day where many lives were dramatically changed. That Tuesday hit close to home, in fact it directly impacted our family, friends, and community. Our lives will never be the same without out beloved Romero who was my only brother. His smile lit up the room and he did everything in his power to ensure the happiness of others. Being a typical older brother, e wanted the best for his sisters and always wanted my parents to live for the day. He proved to be a hero not only in our nation, but he was a hero to our community. He constantly wanted to pay favors forward by paying for someone?s tab or toll or just be gestures of generosity that are often lost in today?s world.

I?ve seen Romeo grow from a 9-year old model to a basketball player to a surf and jeep lover to a man who served our nation with dignity and pride to an always-phenomenal brother. I am truly sorry that I will never be able to see him marry the love of his life, have more ?older-brother-younger sister talks?, see him have children and be able to spoil my nieces and nephews, retire from the Navy, and simply encourage me to do my best and see me grow up.

The whole word cannot forget about 9/11. There are reminiscences everywhere about that day which a day does not go by when I do not think about it:

As I work up one Tuesday morning, after a long night of fun and dancing, I thought that I would wake up to my daily routine-getting up fifteen minutes before class, just enough time to take a shower and grab a bite to eat before the long haul to English class. This particular morning was quite different. In fact, it changed my life.

After I got out of bed, my roommate was still sleeping, so I proceeded to walk towards the end of the hall to find out what the weather was like outside. As I walked down the hall, I heard the blaring noise from many televisions and noticed that many of the doors to the dorms were opened. I thought that this was particularly strange because usually at 11 o?clock during the day, everyone is at class. I walked into a friend?s room and asked what all the ruckus was about and why everyone?s television was on. She responded. ?You haven?t heard? Two planes crashed into each of the World Trade Towers and a plane crashed into the Pentagon.? My first reaction to all this was, ?Did my brother go to work?? He started working at the Pentagon three months prior to the attack and worked on a shift schedule. I rushed to the telephone to call my mother to find out if my brother had gone to work that morning. At first I couldn?t get through to her due to circuits being busy in Washington, D.C. I tried using my cell phone, but that did not work. I then decided to use someone else?s phone and got through. My brother Romeo had talked to my mom at 8:20 that morning, about an hour and a half before the plane drove into the Pentagon. He called from work, which was off, because he usually did not call her from work, due to the ?top secret nature? of his job. He told my mother that my sister had left him lunch and wanted to say how much he appreciated it and like always, said he loved her.

All of this shocked me and kept me in complete dismay all day. I sat in my dorm room and watched the news, waiting for the phone to ring and hoping that my brother had called to say he was alive. I could not let me eyes leave the television. Maybe I would see my brother helping outside of the Pentagon. I kept hop in my mind that the reason he could not call us to let us know that he was okay, was due to the downing of the all the phone lines in D.C. I paced around my room, down the hall and as dawn was approaching, I grew nauseous knowing that so much time had passed. The firefighters were still trying to extinguish the fire made by the jumbo-jet plane and the chance for survivors was diminishing by the second. I received a phone call around eight pm. It was my sister. She told me to pack my bags; she was on her way to come get me. I asked her it they had heard any news, but they had not. When I was picked up, the ride home was quiet. I did not want to go home, expecting to hear to worst-that my brother was dead. When I arrived home, there were over thirty people at my house. ?friends, family, and my brother?s crew. Everyone was in total shock, especially because his 24th birthday was three days after this terrible Tuesday.

We learned later that night that my brother was one of seven who were ?officially missing? in his division. As the days passed, no new news arrived. We sat in agony for 11 days until we received the news that Romeo?s body had been identified. It brings a type of closure knowing that he is resting in peace. Even though he is not physically with me today, his memories and smile will always be in my heart.

It is truly a deep loss to those who were unable to e touched by my brother. When it seems like we begin to move towards accepting what has happened, things begin to surface, which makes it m much more difficult to deal without my brother. This has undoubtedly tested the love and will of our family and the unending support from everyone. We have been able to cope, given that there is nothing we can do to get our Romeo back. There are not enough words to express how much friends, family and complete strangers have come to our aid. This is by far the hardest thing I have ever done-I?ve never lost a good friend, never have buried an immediate relative-I?ve done both since September 11th. As all the other people who have met Romeo know that he was a precious jewel and shined his smile, love, and generosity all over. I will miss Romeo and can?t describe how much. He is the best and will always be our Romeo.