Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning.......

Tawdra wrote:

. . .six years ago? Do you remember what you were doing and where? How that day changed your life?

Yes, I remember. I will never forget.

Surprisingly I was watching television as it happened. I say surprisingly b/c I usually didn't watch t.v. in the morning but for some reason had it on in my room that morning. I was passing by & I heard the newscaster say that a plane had hit a tower of the World Trade Center. I stopped cold & sat on the bed. I couldn't believe my eyes. At first everyone thought it was an accident. We had no idea of the terror to come. I immediately called my Dave & then my Mom. Neither knew anything about it and I filled them in. I don't remember if I called them back when the second plane hit or if I was still on the phone with one of them. I know I relayed the info. I was numb. I could hardly believe that I was seeing this happen right before my eyes. I stayed glued to the television as the tragedy unfolded. Thankfully the girls were in the living room & didn't see any of the footage then.

There were things I HAD to get at Walmart & I had planned to do errands that day. So I packed up the girls and went. I decided that I WAS NOT going to let this evil rob me of my freedom & keep me "locked" at home. In spite of my initial bravery I remember being fearful the entire time. The drive was about 45 minutes each way then as we still lived in our tiny cabin on the mountain. Once at the store I remember pushing my cart around and taking peeks at the ceiling. I felt that at any moment the roof could come crashing in. For all we knew then everyone was vulnerable. In the middle of my shopping trip I suddenly thought, "What am I doing out here? " It was then that I felt this overwhelming need to be home. After Walmart we went straight home & I continued watching the footage and the news reports. I couldn't pull away. I know Sweet Pea saw some of it as it was played over and over again. For weeks she asked us questions, not understanding why anyone would do such a horrible thing. (She was only 5 then but very astute. Her feelings have always been very strong when it comes to wrong & right.) I did my best to explain.

When we got home I called a friend who lives in Somerset, PA area. I was quite worried about her & her family. Nicole told me that they were all-right and her sister who lived only @ 10 minutes away from her actually felt the ground shake & heard the boom when the plane hit. It was that close.

Like Tawdra, I wanted to show my pride & support for my country. I went out the next day to find flags. Not only did I buy one to fly on the front of my house but also found small ones for my planters and to put on the cars. I had to wait a bit for some b/c everyone in town seemed to have the same idea & the stores were all sold out. The response here was tremendous! For a handful of little towns we are very patriotic here. Flags were displayed everywhere and all were talking. Many had friends and/or family that lived in NY City. Some went there often on business. This hit close to home for us. Many people came up to this area or nearby areas to live afterward.

I also remember buying red, white and blue ribbon. I made a ribbon for me to wear and ones for the girls to put in their hair. We had soccer then for both and every time I would tie these in the girls hair. I also remember the first time we heard a plane fly over. We were at the soccer field and everyone looked up. We were afraid. You couldn't help but think that this plane might crash too.

The next several days, maybe even a week or two I was glued to the television. We had satellite then and I was riveted to the news reports. I tried to protect my babies but at the same time be informed. I remember watching when our troops lit up Baghdad & later when the statue came down. I proudly sang along as "Proud to An American" played, cried as Alan Jackson sang his new song, & felt my patriotism and support of our troops soar as I listened & cheered on Toby Keith as he sang amidst controversy. We prayed for our President & all the dear families of the victims.

I was relieved we lived in the boonies but still didn't feel 100% safe for a very, very long time.
I still don't really but it is much different from 6 years ago. I know things will never be the same for our country again.

1 comment:

MOMMY said...

Thank you for reminding us all of what today is. This has given me a moment to stop and reflect on what an important and unfortunate day this is!