Yesterday marked the 10 year anniversary of 9/11...a tragic and sad day in our country's history...in our world's history.
Steve and I were in our car on the way to work when we heard on the radio that a plane had crashed into one of the towers. We were confused b/c we didn't know what kind of plane...we surely did not ever consider it was a passenger jet. We thought it was a small, private plane and wondered how that accident had happened. Then we learned it was a jet...what was going on? I dropped Steve off and got to work. There was a general confusion and panic when I arrived at work. We couldn't pull up any news sites b/c they were overloaded. A TV was on in a large meeting room and we all gathered together watching these horrific events unfold.
I stayed and watched the news for a long time. I watched the towers collapse in that meeting room...I was in stunned disbelief...as was everyone. America was under attack.
We also had a job to do. I worked at Intrado, a company who manages 911 databases for their clients. We didn't actually handle the 911 calls, but we made sure they routed properly. My job felt especially important that day. We all came and went during the work day...spending a lot of time watching the events unfold. There were scary rumors everywhere...a plane was headed for Camp David, a plane was headed for ?, another plane was hijacked. Two more hijacked planes crashed that day...one into the Pentagon and another into a field in PA. The Capitol was the intended target of the plane that crashed in PA, but the passengers realized what was happening and prevented the hijackers from making it to their intended target...the passengers of that flight are heroes.
Very early in the process of assessing what was happening, one of my thoughts turned to Elijah and I found myself thankful that he would not grow up in a world like this. Life changed that day...not a change for the better and my son would not have to experience it. America (and the world) was glued to the event...for weeks and weeks.
We came together and shared...disbelief, anger, grief, patriotism, and God...churches filled to overflowing. People considered and evaluated what was important to them...faith, family, and friendships became dearer...for Steve and I too. We reflected on life, what was important, how we wanted to live.
Even though some of my thoughts were thankful that Elijah would not live in this world, this event did make me consider children again. Until 9/11, I wasn't even sure I wanted to try to have another baby...but the importance of family grew for me as I processed this life changing event. Isabella was born 10 months after the attacks.
This year, as Steve and I were explaining 9/11 to our girls, Bella asked how the hijackers got their knives and weapons through security...for some reason that question made me really realize how different their world is.
These are some of the lyrics we sang at church on this 10th anniversary...where else can we turn?
"God is our refuge, our shelter and our strength. The Lord, our fortress, our rock and our defense. God is our refuge, our help in time of need. He will always be our peace." Peter Gagnon~
God bless~
Rach
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