Remembering this day

I remember very clearly saying to the Webmaster on September 10, 2001, how content I was with our married life, even in a small apartment that always seemed to be cluttered.

The next morning, the Webmaster had slept through his alarm and was running late. Since I worked a swing shift and didn’t start until 1 pm, I dozed while he got ready, and then asked him to turn on the radio as he walked out the door. I was expecting to hear Rush Limbaugh, but all I heard was ABC News talking about “the collapse of the Towers.”

I was instantly awake and yelled for the Webmaster. He came back into our room and we both sat and listened to the radio until we realized that we should be watching the TV. The images were staggering, and because we were three hours behind all the action, the immediate horror was over and while new information was pouring in, nothing else was happening. The planes had crashed, the towers had come down, the Pentagon was in flames, and Flight 93 was burning in Pennsylvania.

I felt such shock, and a little personal guilt that I had slept through the whole thing. I knew that it was due to the time difference, but I still felt bad about being unaware for that long. The Webmaster and I both went to work in a daze. I stayed glued to the radio all day, and spent time that evening in tears. The whole world seemed to have been turned sideways, shaken violently, and then set back on its axis upside down. Nothing was ever going to be the same again.

And nothing has been the same after September 11, 2001. So much changed instantly, but so many things have happened since that are a direct consequence of that day. My brother went to war, for instance. The thing that really bothers me is that to the Munchkin and Baby Boy, September 11th is a historical fact. It happened before they were born. But to me, it was something that I witnessed and cried over. Then I think of how earlier generations feel about Pearl Harbor, or JFK’s assassination – flashpoints in history that we mark our lives by. Every generation has one.

I know the day will come when the kids will ask about this day. I can only pray that they never have to live through a day like it.

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 11th, 2005 at 11:18 pm and is filed under General.
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