20th Anniversary of 9/11
I apologize for the delay on this piece. It was tough watching the videos and reliving the memories.
Four close friends experienced that harrowing day first hand. All are still traumatized in their own way. I won't go into too much detail to preserve their anonymity. One is a business man who was in one of the World Trade Center buildings (not the Towers) that fateful morning and luckily was able to get out. One is a doctor who immediately helped out at the scene. One is a first responder who immediately raced to the complex to help out regardless of the danger he was putting himself in. My final friend is a former NYC business man who ran from his Wall Street office and was enveloped by the cloud of concrete dust, remains, papers, and smoke as he tried to escape.
"9/11: Survivors Stories from That Day/ I Was There"
Each one survived with stories of terror but with also accounts of American heroism at their finest.
Rather than watch the same videos of the actual attack which I had done so for each year after the event, I sought out interviews and videos which I had not seen before. I wanted a different perspective on what had happened, from the Pentagon, to the Towers, to the field in Shanksville, PA.
"Eyewitness Accounts from Heroic Pentagon Survivors"
Included are some of the videos of courage and interest that I watched. It was gut-renching, as it should be. I was in tears. I was transfixed. I was compelled to share them with you.
"9/11 - Colonel Will's Story"
I never thought I could be moved 20 years later as much as I was moved 20 years ago. I was in tears. I don't know what to say other than I still grieve as much as America grieves. I found myself in tears several times and sometimes continuously watching the hours of footage that I had not see before. I wept for those souls over and over again, as many of us have done so.
"60 Minutes 9/11 Archive: Under Ground Zero"
I watched a video starring Dan Rather who toured the multi-level complex.
I read the transcripts and listened to the flight recordings again, remembering the fear of the passengers as well as the heroism of Flight 93.
I researched the memorial for Flight 93 in Shanksville PA and have made a pledge to visit it this next year. I watched Pentagon survivor accounts and the rescue effort right after the crash.
"Former Ticket Agent Grapples with Guilt after Allowing Hijackers on 9/11 Flight"
I saw the customer service agent who helped board the terrorists who were late running to the plane, only to realize that he was the one who let them on board. I watched a video of a hanger where items are stored for the museum. I watched the video of the poor survivor who goes to bed hearing the cries of a 100,000 people watching the buildings coming down before he falls asleep each night and when he wakes up. I watched the boat rescue from Manhattan to NJ which saved 500,000 people.
"The 9/11 Boat Rescue that Saved Half a Million People"
Years prior, I could not bring myself to watch anything about Flight 93. I don't know why. Just fear in knowing the truth about what those poor poor souls went through, hearing their actual conversations. I finally did and I was in complete tears.
"The Tragic Story of Flight 93"
I will tell you that I am forever grateful that I did finally watch a documentary about it and I now know all of these brave souls. Knowing their courage and heroism, knowing that they were going to die. Many saying good bye. And many many acting against adversity, charging forward against certain death. Knowing that they were taking charge of their last moments of life, fighting for America, fighting for themselves. So incredible. So horrific. So honorable. I am in awe.
"A Tour of Hanger 17"
Please continue to learn about about this horrific legacy on our country and do what you should and need to do to teach it to our young people. They need to know about it. We need to NEVER FORGET. God bless.
***Bloggers Note: I encourage you to watch each one of these videos to understand what people went through, not only in the towers. Each are safe links from Youtube.
Where was I and what was I doing on September 11th, 2001?
ReplyDeleteAt approximately 0530 I was on my way to work at High Desert State Prison (HDSP). I was the Southern Transportation Sergeant for the Nevada Department of Corrections, and we had an early transportation going out this day.
I was N/B somewhere near the Santa Fe Casino curve on US 95, when I heard the news of the first plane hitting the one of the Towers.
I was in shock at first and then I was angry as hell. I continued to the Prison and as the officers that worked for me arrived to get the transport out, they too were also in shock/angry as hell.
We got the transport on it’s way and I just sat in my office listening to the news for the rest of the day. I really wanted to do something, anything, but didn’t know what. I’ve always been one to run towards danger, but didn’t know which way the danger was this time.
That was a sad day, and I was really pissed for a long time because of the sneak attack on our country. I guess I now know how the people felt on December 7th, 1941, when Pearl Harbor was attacked.
Thank you so much Skip for telling your story and memory of that day. I really appreciate it. (((HUGS)))
DeleteI will never forget. Thanks for the fresh perspectives.
ReplyDeleteAlways Brother! Thank you for always supporting me. ;)
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