Poof

I woke up on this day 10 years ago to a phone call from my father telling me the news. And my first thought was - I HAVE to get to work. I worked in a newsroom an hour and a half from Manhattan. Even though it was scary as all hell and who knows what the hell could have happened on the roads - I knew I had to get to the newsroom and help out however I could. I'll never forget my drive to work. I took back roads at my father's request. And on my way as I admired the beauty of the apple-red leaves, I thought to myself - my world, the world, is never going to be the same. Life has permanently changed.

Here's what I remember when I arrived early to work: I remember talking to a woman who thought she lost her boyfriend. I remember talking to a construction worker who witnessed the whole thing from a rooftop. I remember call after call to the newsroom of people who saw, saw, saw and wanted to tell, tell, tell. How hard must it be to keep such horror inside? I remember staying away from the television. I could not bear to watch people jumping from buildings. I knew if I watched it, I would cry. And I wanted to hold it together so I could do my job. I remember everyone huddled around the televisions in complete awe and helplessness. Who could help those poor people stuck at the top of the towers? No one. So the world just watched instead.  Those firefighters and police officers tried. They really did. But with two fell swoops those buildings just dropped. One widow I interviewed was told that when the towers fell, her husband's body was vaporized. Poof.

Now, ten years later, it sometimes feels like "Poof" that day is gone. We have gone back to our complacency. We have forgotten. And I think it's important to remember.  We don't need to partake in a "nationwide sobfest" as one of my friends on facebook referred to it, but we can remember those who died, and think about the loved ones they left behind. We can also remember the goodness that came out of 9/11 and how people came together and were kind to one another. I remember that too.  I don't think there's anything wrong with memorial services or monuments, because if we don't remember, future generations will forget. Our children will forget if we don't talk to them about our memories.