OT Where Were You 13 Years Ago Today?

[cheerKT]

In 5th grade and my stepdad came and signed me out of school before they broke the news to the students. I was pumped because I had complained about having PE that day, and I thought my whining worked and they picking me up so I didn't have to go to that.

He broke down in tears in front of me as soon as I got in the car while he explained that the "country was under attack". I had never seen a grown man cry before, let alone him. It's interesting reflecting back on watching the coverage. I didn't quite grasp the depth and severity of it but at the same time I did.

 

[SarahS]

I put my application to Rutgers to study Arabic (on an Air Force ROTC scholarship) into the mailbox that day at 8 am. Then I turned on the news ... And considered breaking into the mailbox to retrieve that application. I knew the world had changed.

 

[cheerisloving]

I was in Arlington,VA 5 minutes from the Pentagon. I was only 5, but the day will always live with me.

My mother worked at an elementary school where she could see the planes hit. She saw the plane flying low and called up to Emergency call because that's where she worked part time, and was on the phone when the plane hit.

My dad was an Arlington County police officer and was a first responder on this day. If it wasn't for him I would've been stuck at my school but luckily he was able to get to me and my brother, taking us to our mother. We had to take a long alternate route home because the highway we normally travelled on went through to the Pentagon. I had no clue, but I knew something bad had happened. I was so worried about my dad. I saw the 'big important building' that I passed everyday for as long as I could remember, in flames on TV.

My parents didn't let us go to school the next day.

For months I saw that big part of the building that was missing, only to be draped with a flag. I was scared of planes, of terror attacks.

13 years later, I am proud to be from a city with so much strength and so many people who love their country. I get offended when people claim that I have no clue about this tragedy because I was too young. But it impacted my life, and played a big role in who I am today.

 

[cheermomforever]

I was at work, no tv or radio, then parents came in for class and told us that a plane hit the towers and then it all went crazy when the 2 nd one did. When I go to Ny I just look up and cannot imagine seeing a plane hitting the towers. I got so choked up this morning, especially watching the kids talk about their parents they lost.

 

[amy1k]

Sorry to comment a third time, but another thing that left such an impression on me...it probably was a few days later, I doubt it was the day of. My husband was given some sort of media card...allowing access to areas...or through areas, in the event of emergency. I don't remember specifics, but it had to do with news being published during emergencies. We're in Seattle, so far from the areas immediately impacted. I just remember my fear about how the whole world suddenly changed and how something like that could be needed. How the safety and peace that we so readily enjoy became threatened. I don't remember when I stopped holding my breath when there was breaking news or when I heard sirens. I guess I still do, to a point.

 

[Just-a-Mom]

He kept the metal sheet thing (clueless about what it's called, but it's like the stamp that prints the paper) from the front page of the paper they printed that day. It's been sitting behind my headboard for 13 years.

This is amazing. What an incredible thing to have!

 

[katstat1]

I worked in a hospital pharmacy then. I think someone saw something on an internet news site. I remember spending a lot of time out of the pharmacy in the different units of the hospital so I could watch on TV and see what was going on. I remember stopping to get gas after work because they weren't sure what was going to happen with the gas prices or if there would be a shortage.

My parents were in Alaska. I think they were still on their cruise, but then were going to spend time on land too. I know my mom was worried about how they were going to get back home.

I also remember how empty the sky seemed with no planes flying.

 

[amy1k]

This is amazing. What an incredible thing to have!

At the time, I was horrified that he kept it. I just pulled it out, and it is moving. Shocking. I'm not going to read the articles, because the headline was enough for tears. Thankfully, the WSJ doesn't print many photos.

 

[mamabear]

I was living in Cali at the team and my boyfriend (at the time) loved in NJ. He had a long commute to Philly every morning and would call me during it, even though it was 5am my time. I had the KTLA morning show on in the background and we chatted happily away. In the time that he parked his car and walked into the building, the network cut in with breaking news. I was "on hold" waiting for him by the time he got to his office to tell him; since I knew his uncle worked in the WTC complex.

I switched over to NBC and Tom Brokaw. I will never forget how unsettling it was to watch him as he witnessed the second plane hit. The disbelief and quiver in his voice made me realize that everything changed in that moment.

The day was filled with phone calls.I grew up in Boston and had many friends in NYC ,DC and NJ. Thankfully, my boyfriend 's uncle was ok, but several other of my friends had family members and good friends who perished that day. The worse was my friend who lost her cousin, his wife and their two and half year old daughter, Christine Lee, on the first plane. She was the youngest victim of the day and was flying to see her gramdma and Mickey Mouse at Disneyland. Another friend's dad worked for the dept of defense and he was taken into a secure bunker for a strategical mtg, before the second plane even hit. My friend was distraught all day.

I never felt so disconnected from my roots. So many people were leaving the big cities after 9/11, but I felt I need to be back on the east coast. Two weeks later, my boyfriend asked me to move to be with him, and within a month, I started the total surreal experience of driving across the country post 9/11. The tributes and anger that was displayed as I drove were touching and sombering and it was magnified as I got closer to the City.

I moved into an area where EVERYONE was personally touched. They were still living the nightmare. Towns in northern NJ lost dozens of people. Recovery operations were being staffed by members of fire and police from here. There was a gaping hole in the skyline and it was still smoldering. You could hear the jetfighters fly overhead from the local bases. The eerie sound of the recovery efforts echoed for blocks through the City when I visited there.

I don't know how to explain it. It is still pretty raw for a lot of people here. And people are still dying from respiratory issues that occured during the rescue. My friend's brother was a NYPD firefighter and died last year , as another victim of 9.11. There is still an unease. It didn't change our way of life, but it altered it...if that makes sense. That sense of innocence is gone.

 

[mamabear]

I put my application to Rutgers to study Arabic (on an Air Force ROTC scholarship) into the mailbox that day at 8 am. Then I turned on the news ... And considered breaking into the mailbox to retrieve that application. I knew the world had changed.

your post gave me chills.

 

[cheerisloving]

At the time, I was horrified that he kept it. I just pulled it out, and it is moving. Shocking. I'm not going to read the articles, because the headline was enough for tears. Thankfully, the WSJ doesn't print many photos.

We visited the Newseum in the 7th grade, and they have portion of the museum dedicated to media coverage of 9/11. I cried so hard at the headlines. I can't read or watch anything directly related because it's too real, I would say close to home, but it WAS at home for me.

 

[NJ Coach]

I don't know how to explain it. It is still pretty raw for a lot of people here. And people are still dying from respiratory issues that occured during the rescue. My friend's brother was a NYPD firefighter and died last year , as another victim of 9.11. There is still an unease. It didn't change our way of life, but it altered it...if that makes sense. That sense of innocence is gone.

I was just going to say that I still don't like to talk about it. I live across the bay, with Staten Island between me and the city. Seeing the towers burning from my town (crystal clear day) was terrifying. Smelling the ash and having it cover our cars for days after....there are no words to describe that. Driving past the train station and seeing cars in the parking lot, knowing how many people would not come home to them. Seeing firefighters waiting at said train station to hose down people. Too many painful memories.

 

[CheerBank]

I was just going to say that I still don't like to talk about it. I live across the bay, with Staten Island between me and the city. Seeing the towers burning from my town (crystal clear day) was terrifying. Smelling the ash and having it cover our cars for days after....there are no words to describe that. Driving past the train station and seeing cars in the parking lot, knowing how many people would not come home to them. Seeing firefighters waiting at said train station to hose down people. Too many painful memories.

The firefighters...pretty much every fire station throughout the city and Long Island has a permanent 9/11 memorial displayed at the entrance to remember those in their unit they lost.

 

[Cheermom1969]

I was just going to say that I still don't like to talk about it. I live across the bay, with Staten Island between me and the city. Seeing the towers burning from my town (crystal clear day) was terrifying. Smelling the ash and having it cover our cars for days after....there are no words to describe that. Driving past the train station and seeing cars in the parking lot, knowing how many people would not come home to them. Seeing firefighters waiting at said train station to hose down people. Too many painful memories.

((big hugs))

 

[garretttt]

I was in 2nd grade and i remember the school being on lockdown and me not knowing why. And then my parents came and got me and i was sooooo happy, then we went home and turned on the TV and that was when the 2nd plane crashed and i just remember sitting there freaking out cause i thought it was Atlanta. So weird i remember that exact day like it was current.