I Will NEVER Forget 9/11/2001

~Magickal Graphics~




September 11, 2001 is a day I will never forget. None of should ever forget what happened that day.

It was a beautiful sunny September morning. I was at my grandmother's in Brooklyn, New York. I had just spent the last 3 weeks sorting through and packing what she wanted to take after living in the same apartment for 37 years. She was taking a flight with me in 2 days, to live with me in Georgia. She turned on her radio as she did every morning to listen to the weather. She was about to go get her hair done for the last time by her long time beautician. And to say her good byes to some friends that always had their hair done the same day.

But instead of the weather, we heard a report of pluming black smoke coming from one of the Twin Towers. I told her something isn't right, something is very wrong. I flipped on her TV, and to our horror we saw the tragedy that had begun. As we sat watching, we saw the second plane approaching. All I could do is stand in her kitchen staring at the TV saying move, move you're going to hit the other tower and trying to "wave" the plane away as it struck the second tower. The first I could almost believe an accident, but the second, that would be impossible for both to be accidental.

And so we sat, glued to her TV for the rest of the day and night watching the horrors unfold and the reports of the Pentagon crash and the crash of Flight 93. The events that followed that day, the collapse, the smoke I saw creeping over roof tops heading towards where we were. The dead eerie silence of not a single air craft heading to LaGuardia or JFK to land, I remember it all. The following day, with only the sound of fighter jets, a pair flying over head. I never in my life thought I would see such a day.

Of even more significance to me, that morning my daughters and I were supposed to be there. Down by the towers. I had planned a little trip to see the towers, Trinity Church, and South Street Seaport. We never made it there that morning. As fate would have it, we spent the night awake because my oldest had a really bad nose bleed that she was afraid to sleep and was up every few minutes thinking it had restarted. I still sometimes think about what if I was there with my then 5 and 8 year old girls. It scares me!

I remember growing up, walking to school every morning and seeing the Twin Towers in the distance just over the river. If I had walked down to the corner (about 5 houses from my grandma's apartment) I could have watched the tragedy as it happened instead of on TV. But I couldn't bring myself to go out the door. We were only about 3-5 miles from the scene, about a 15-20 minute train ride away.

We didn't get to leave that Thursday, but instead we left on Saturday. Our flight was the only one to come in from and return to Georgia. The flight literally let off its passengers refueled and turned back around. It was a full flight. As we were about to take off a helicopter decided it would land in our path. As we were about to land, a private plane decided to land in our path, just as we were about to touch down our pilot had to abort the landing and make the plane take back off is the only way to describe it. After he circled and was recleared to land, we touched down and the entire plane erupted in applause for our pilot and crew bring us down safely.

No, I will never forget September 11th.