Remembering

I wasn't sure if I wanted to post today, but feel I should write down my memories of 9/11 so that I will have them. I remember it being a normal work day for me--Caleb was only 4 months old, so I had not been back to work very long. Dr. Whitaker had his office tv on, and was watching it while waiting for patients to be checked in. I wasn't usually over at that part of the clinic, but I don't remember Casey (Dr. Stewart) working that day, so that's probably why I was over there. As soon as the news came on and we saw what had happened, I remember thinking how awful it was that the airplane had crashed into the tower--still thinking it is an accident and that something bad had possibly happened to the pilot. When the second plane hit, I knew then that it was no accident. My first thought was to get to Caleb. I remember it so clearly in my mind. I just wanted to hold my baby and make sure he was fine, although I knew he was. We kept the tv on the rest of the work day, and I remember leaving at lunch and going over to Caleb's daycare ( it was on-site) and just holding him close.

I remember how Peter Jennings became teary while reporting on the towers collapsing. I remember how he told every viewer to hug their children and family members. I remember Mayor Rudy Guiliani, and how in control he seemed. I remember being so thankful that President Bush had won the election. I also remember wondering where God was in the midst of the horrible act. Then the stories started to come out--stories of courage and honor. I can remember the woman whose husband died on Flight 93-I can still see her pregnant form standing up in her black dress at one of the many special reports that were still on days and weeks later. I remember being so proud to be an American and so unified with the rest of the country. I can remember reading about all the different stories in People and Newsweek. I saved the magazines and newspapers in the days after the attacks.

And now it is seven years later. My baby is in 2nd grade, and the country is no longer united. I think about the different people whose lives were irrevocably changed by 9/11--those who lost loved ones, and my heart still goes out to them. Today was a normal day for our family--school, work, laundry, etc, but I wanted to remember and reflect on the significance of today while it was on my mind.