Has it been 11 years?

Kacey said to me first thing this morning.. Can you believe it's been 11 years? No...no I can't.  As I drove away from dropping the girls off at school the moment of silence was on the radio, and then God Bless America played.  My heart sank & I was filled with sadness.  I was happy to not have the girls in the car with me. 

Do you remember where you were on that fateful day 11 years ago?  I do as I believe most everyone in this country and many countries around the world will never forget where they were that exact moment.  I was walking into my job at Saloman Smith Barney in our operations division as the first plane had just hit the first building.  I remember we had a couple of guys that had recently moved to San Antonio to work on our trade desk from New York.  The look of complete and utter shock and concern grew so very deep on their faces. As we all realized that the plane was not an accident as we watched the second plane take out the 2nd building.  Our hearts were all in the same place…deep in our stomachs.  Many of us worked very closely to and had friends that worked in one or both of the buildings or nearby.  It became very obvious quickly that America had just been attacked.  My thoughts & prayers will forever be with family of injured or lost ones on that day.  It will forever be etched into the hearts of many.  It is quite remarkable at how many people were connected to someone that was impacted by this devastating tragedy.  I think no matter where you were you felt you had been attacked.  My emotions went from being scared, mad, angry and surreal.  My sense of what is happening and where are we headed swirled in my mind for days.

I think as many others do the question why has remained.  Why did this happen?  What lesson is here for us to learn from?  Was it just their time to go?  Will we ever have the answer?  Devastation is hard to handle and some never get over it they just have learned to deal.  I have met or know so many that their lives changed because of the events of the day.  My brother in law made it home that day.  He works nearby and was not heard from for many hours.  A family member was pulled from rubble only to look around to see that he was only one of a few that was alive.  He has amazing footage from that day as he was a part of the media that shot some amazing footage.  In fact his work has made it into the archives and has been part of the HBO segments.  I am fortunate that my husband made it out and home that day.  I have 2 cousins (twin brothers) that escaped the day untouched.  One that worked in World Trade Center 1, he had a dentist appointment and was going into work late that morning.  THANK GOD!!  The brother worked across the street and had taken the day off.  THANK GOD!!  Unfortunately not everyone can say that.  My heart and prayers will continue to be with those directly impacted.  To the Devlin Family – we love you and will always remember! You will continue to be in our thoughts and prayers!!!

Kacey works in various areas in Manhattan so I never exactly know where he is at any given time.  I just have to believe and trust….it’s not always easy.  I am always a bit relieved on this day that he is working from home.  I am not sure why honestly..I just find comfort.  He’s taken a couple of pictures of the new building going up.  I love knowing that we as Americans banded together to comfort complete strangers.   

 

What does this all mean for me?  I chose to have the TV stations off today.  I will always remember but I don’t need to continue to see the events of the day as they are still vivid in my mind.  I feel an unbelievable amount of sadness for the families that had loved ones murdered.  It is my way of dealing. 

I am thankful that I live in America!  God Bless you all and may we never forget.