9/11 - Always Remembering

It doesn't matter that it's 12 years later - every year on 9/11 I wake up and think about the day that I experienced on 9/11/01.  I woke up this morning and showered and as I got out of the shower, I looked at the clock - it was about 7:50 am, which is just about the time that my college roommate and I were awoken by her dad calling to let us know he was ok.

Her dad was a pilot for Northwest at the time, and when he called and woke us up, we had no idea what was going on.  We turned on the TV to see this site...

We sat there, still half asleep, but completely in shock and watched as the second plane hit the other tower.  From that point forward, we were glued to the TV - we sat there all day and watched... went downstairs and got food and brought it back to our room to watch more.  We watched the attack on the Pentago and sat both terribly sad yet extremely moved by the actions of the passengers on the plane that was diverted from its intended target and downed in Pennsylvania.  We were so lucky - her dad was not on any of the flights that day.

My mom worked at a high school in Texas where a number of the kids had parents who were either pilots or flight attendants.  They had a number of tense hours of trying to get a hold of parents and parents trying to get a hold of their kids.  They were lucky - no one was on any of the flights.

4 years later, as troops were still deployed, a friend of mine who was a Marine reserve was informed that he may be called overseas.  We were so hopeful that it wouldn't happen, but it did.  He was sent to Afghanistan to work with a very specialized unit, and not a day went by that I didn't think about him and pray for him.  We were lucky - he returned home safely. 

There were so many that were not so lucky - so many who were lost and whose friends and family are so greatly affected by that day.  So many families return to the site of the attacks each year to celebrate and remember the lives of the ones they lost.

I never understood what my parents felt when they talked about knowing exactly where they were when Kennedy was shot, until I experienced this day 12 years ago and I remember this day more vividly than I do most... I remember what we ate, what we talked about and how I felt as we watched and watched and watched.  I know I am lucky - that my memories, no matter how vivid, are memories of relief.  So, as I remember what my 9/11 was like 12 years ago, I pray for those whose days did not end in relief.