we shall never forget

The World Trade Center as it was before the fateful day of 9 / 11

I took these photographs while taking the famous Circle Line boat cruise around Manhattan.

At the time we lived about 50 miles from Manhattan.I never really was a fan of the "city" life. Paul worked there and he really loved it. So we went in for the day and did all the touristy things one does when visiting a city.
I always was intrigued by the "Twin Towers". The simple yet powerful architectural statement they gave. Their huge size as they rose above all the other buildings surrounding them.  While I think the Chrysler building and Empire State building might be more beautiful , there just was something about these two buildings that captured my interest.


The day of the attacks I will have permanently seared into memory.
Too young for John or Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King or Kent State to have had any sort of personal impact .

The day was spectacular. A calm , bright day. The sky was cobalt blue and not one cloud dotted the horizon. The air was a perfect mid 70's, the wind almost non existent.

As I sat that morning with a cup of coffee and the TV on catching the morning news, the first plane hit. In the beginning as they reported on it they really had no idea what had happened. A bomb? It was then confirmed a plane had struck one of the towers.

I called my husband to ask him if he was okay. He worked a few blocks away and said that he had felt his building shake but was unaware of what had happened.
I had told him a plane had hit one of the towers and while speaking to him I watched in horror as the second plane approached and plowed into the second building.
NO ACCIDENT!

My husband then said he needed to go down there, as he is in law enforcement .

Sometime later he called me and told me of the horrific scene that was unfolding.
As we spoke , I heard him scream into the phone  "Holy S*** ! " and I saw on TV the tower collapsing.
His phone went dead and I could not contact him .

Hours went by and I sat mesmerized in front of the TV, not knowing if my husband was alive, hurt or worse.

I finally heard from him later that night. When he finally made it home, his suit he was wearing that was a dark gray was covered in a light gray dust, his car that was black was now covered in this light gray dust.

For many months he as well as his Brother who is a firefighter worked at what was now being called "Ground Zero " helping to recover victims.

Though we lived 50 miles away, you could see the smoke and it had a smell  that had and electrical sort of scent. As the weeks past and the twisted pile continued to smolder,  when the wind blew west you could always catch the scent on the wind.

One of the things that stands strong in my memory of that day and the days to follow was the silence.
At that time we lived in a populated area. You soon get used to the noise that goes with it.
There were no planes flying overhead , no trains traveling in the distance, no road noise to speak of....just silence other than the birds and wind.

 I can still remember driving over the George Washington Bridge as I headed out of town and looked to my left to see the smoke rising from where the towers that I so admired once stood.

As the years past and I had occasion to drive out of town, I always looked to my left as I crossed the bridges. Subconsciously seeking the towers. I always said a prayer  for the lives lost as I looked across to my left, the landscape of Manhattan forever changed from what I had always known.

Today I have my American Flag hanging to pay tribute to the victims of that day.
No, I know I will never forget.