Where were you?

When I lived in Baltimore, MD in the 1980s I used to love to go to New York. I'd drive up or take the train. One of my favorite things to do was to take the subway down to the World Trade Center to go to the observation deck on the top floor of the south tower so I could enjoy the view of the city at night.

In 2001, just two weeks after my 40th birthday I went into work like any other day. Shortly after I arrived someone said they heard that some big news story was happening in NYC. We all checked online news websites and couldn't believe what we were reading. Soon our manager brought the TV out so we could still work a little while watching the unfolding events.

It was surreal. I kept thinking: "Can this really be happening?" It was horrible to hear the news reports of planes flying around the country and no one knew for a while who or what was coming next. Did they really give an order to shoot down any airplane with people on them who did not respond to control towers? Yes they did. It was unbelievable. We all speculated if Dallas or anywhere in Texas might also be a target since this is where the President was from. We were not in a landmark building, nor many floors up so we did not evacuate the building like some did in downtown Dallas.

I remember feeling like I was in shock! I think everyone in the country felt the same way. Even day, weeks and months later I still couldn't get over the images of what happened to one of my favorite places in the country and the loss of so many lives.

Ten years later the emotions are still there for me. I looked at videos of the memorial and heard personal stories of people who lost loved ones and it makes me tear up.

I think it's good to look back and remember. It's good to be thankful for those that lost their lives trying to help and save others. It is a somber day of reflection. I do miss the carefree days we had before this tragedy though, but life marches slowly onward.