nmah5321.xml

nmah5321.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-12-04

I live in Yonkers, NY. Well my day started as usual. Got up, got my 7year old ready for school & then drove off to her school. I work in White Plains, NY I always take the Cross County Parkway to the Hutchinson River Parkway. I remember when I was on the Cross County and looking up at the sky & thinking how beautiful it looked, it was so clear & a beautiful blue. It was such a nice day I had my window rolled down. Once I reached the Hutch the traffic was backed up. I was listen to 103.5 KTU when suddenly it just went out so I switched over to Z100 but I didn't like the song playing so I turned onto 1010 Wins, they were in the middle of the traffic report when they interrupted and said they had a caller on the line stating that a plane crashed into one of the towers. The caller said everything in her apartment was shaking & then she looked out her window & saw a plane flying low & tilted to the left. She later heard a boom & then headed up to her roof top & was shocked to see a gaping hole in the tower & she can clearly see fire bellowing out of the huge hole. The announcer kept asking her if she was certain that it was a plane. It seemed he did not believe her but then some of his collegues called & stated the same thing. I felt horrible for the people in the plane & in the Tower & I just kept wondering how such an accident could have happened? Once I reached the employee parking lot that's when they announced that a second plane hit, I instantly knew there is NO way this was an accident. I walked quickly into the building punched in & went straight to the cafeteria. We always have CNN Headline knews on, there were several people already glued to the TV. They showed a live shot & it was hard to believe what I was seeing. I stayed for a few minutes more to find out what's going on but for some reason CNN Headline news were not showing much footage, people were yelling at the TV & trying to change to another channel but I guess CNN were trying to get the story straight before airing anything. So I decided to go down to my desk & everyone was talking about it. We later found out about the Pentegon and the Plane in PA. One of our reservation agents ran down to tell us one of the Towers collapsed. Even though I heard what she said it did not sink in & I just kept working & I called my husband, I had a very difficult time getting through when I finally did I told him to turn the TV on I didn't tell him why but when He did he said "Oh my God what the hell happened!" I told him what I knew but to call me back if he found out anything else. The office that I work in does not have internet & the area we are at we can't get a radio working so we basically depended on anyone who was coming back from the cafeteria. The reservation agent came back down to tell us about the second tower collapsing. I definately felt scared not knowing what more would happen. I was afraid that they would try to crash another plane at the power plant, Indian Point. I left work a little before 5pm I figured the highways might be crazy with everyone trying to get home to their loved ones so I took the back roads back to Yonkers. Then I got on the NYS thruway southbound, there's one point on this thruway that you are able to see the Empire State Building clearly. When I reached that point that Tuesday, all I could see was just thick black smoke from the very last building that collapsed. That's when it sunk in, that's when it dawned on my the hundreds of people who lost their lives that Tuesday. Even after talking about it at work, watching the TV & seeing the news footage it was like my brain was not registering it even when the Reservations agent came down twice to tell us the towers collapsed it was like my brain was not registering what was happening until I could not see the Empire State Building from that black smoke. This is absolutely horrible, i know that wishing someone dead is a sin but I cannot help but hope that they capture Bin Laden and torture him, make him suffer. Killing him instanly would not be satisfying to me i want to see him suffer, I want to see him cry and scream and beg for mercy. I know this is horrible but it's also horrible for a child to grow up without their Mommy or Daddy and for a child not yet born to never meet his/her Daddy. Thank you for your time, I feel a little better after saying what I really felt. My prayers go out to the families of all the victims and to those who witnessed everything. (Since that day when I look at the clear blue sky, my stomach gets upset.) God Bless America!!!

Spend more time with my family & friends. I've been trying to express my feelings more, I'm very shy but I'm trying not to be, show people I do care about that they are a very important part of my life. I've always tried to let everyone know I care but I think it's time to make sure that I appreciate them all. I think I'm more paranoid right after 9/11 I could not sleep each time I heard a plane flying by or if I see a plane flying low. I'm watching everyone around me.

We should not forget those lost on that awful day, we should cherish their lives. I was so touched to see how Americans from across this country stopped their lives and came to NYC to help. My family & I went to a memorial service in Yonkers and an American Red Cross Worker gave each of my daughters a stuffed animal. Attached to each one was a drawing by a child, we don't know the children's name but it was so sweet. It was just amazing to see how americans across this nation "UNITED" no one was looking at skin color it was just amazing. It was so heartwarming. At the one year anniversary, my family & I were at the corner of West/Vesey...every single person I made eye contact with smiled back. It was amazing, there was no hatred, no racial tension, everyone was there for the same reasons. Our love for this country & our sorrow for those lost. I know I know I kind of got off the subject but it's what I wanted to say.

YES! Yes it did before it was just "the flag" of the country I live in. Now it represents the country I love, the country who gives me the freed of speech, religion, etc. The country that my children will grow in without fear of being a girl, without fear of having a good education, freedom of expressing their feelings, wearing what they want, having the freedom to do even the smallest thing like showing her face & being proud of who she is, freedom to vote, etc etc etc. I think after 9/11 many people's eyes have opened and they have realized how fortunate we are to live in this great country.