I recently watched 9/11: Emergency Room on TLC with my daughter who was a baby on the first 9/11. She never knew her Uncle Steve, but over the years she has heard so much about him. As we watched the show I got tears in my eyes, and she gently touched my arm to comfort me. She asked lots of questions, and when she saw the first building come down, she looked at me and said, "That's the one Uncle Steve was in, right?" I nodded and we kept watching, and I was glad a program like this was on that I could watch with her, but as I sat there and saw the buildings crumble again, it felt like it did the first time eleven years ago. I thought, "This can't be happening!" I still couldn't believe it.
All these years later my family will mark 9/11 again as so many families will. There are people around the world who will also mourn with us, for what happened here profoundly affected them as well. Let us remember the names of those lost in the attacks, in those places that remain sacred to us all now. Also, let's not forget the families who lost fathers, mothers, husbands, sons, and daughters, those who lost friends, and co-workers. All of them suffer most on this day. We know what we feel and think and there is no way to get over it because, as I have said many times before, there is no getting over it. We never will.
Photo Credits: World Trade Center-britannica.com; firefighters-ioffer.com
Victor Lana has published numerous stories and articles in literary magazines and online, including his favorite haunt here at Blogcritics. His books A Death in Prague (2002),Move (2003), and The Savage Quiet September Sun: A Collection of 9/11 Stories are available at online bookstores. …
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Article comments
1 - Dr. Joseph S. Maresca
The fateful day still registers clearly in mind. I was in midtown when the planes crashed. Quickly, there was a flight of cars out of Manhattan and into Harlem, Westchester and the Bronx. I didn't take a subway or bus for fear of sitting in traffic for hours. After a few minutes, a pungent burning smell was present everywhere. The smell was like burning steel. I had to walk at least a mile before the air was clear again. Remarkably, people moved out of the area quickly without falling over each other.
Moving quickly, I walked a number of miles from midtown into Harlem and got the first train going into Westchester County. The trains were jam packed. The exit from Manhattan was very orderly under the circumstances.
2 - Joan
Thank you Vic. You put into words my feelings.