On September 11th, the one that changed it all; I was in Manhattan with Gayle Curtis on business. We had gone to see a play the evening before and enjoyed strolling down Broadway taking in the sights and sounds. We stopped in a souvenir shop where I bought a TShirt for my daughter and a postcard....with the twin towers on the front.
September 10th PM -
from our hotel window
Manhattan - early morning on September 11th
The morning of September 11th we had a fairly early flight. It was a beautiful, sunshine filled morning. The city was bustling and life proceeded with business as usual. As we made our way downstairs to check out, I stopped along the way to take pictures from different windows. We couldn't quite see the Towers from our hotel but we commented that morning that we wished we'd had enough time to visit them.
As we were checking out; it was about that time that the plane hit the first tower. We were unaware of what had happened and headed out in the taxi toward the airport. As we looked to our right we could see a huge back plume of smoke. Our driver was foreign so we couldn't communicate well and the radio was not on, so we were still clueless. As we proceeded, fire truck after fire truck began to scream past us going in the opposite direction toward downtown. We knew it was a major fire but could have never dreamed of the reality of a terriorist attack. I was so enthralled by the black smoke and the frantic sirens it never occurred to me to pull my camera out of my purse and snap a picture. Those of you who know me best know that I always have a camera close at had to shoot any and everything. For some reason; not that day though.
What we saw driving toward the airport
As we approached the airport and pulled up to the curb we noticed that the airport grounds were barren. The usual airport crowds were no where to be seen. It was an eerie feeling. A security guy came over and told us we had to move on. We told him we had a flight to catch. He said there were no flights in or out. My pulse skyrocketed ... at that point I knew something unimaginable was happening. We asked if he could tell us what was going on and he told us that a plane had hit one of the towers. We asked where we could go and he told us there was a hotel across the highway.
As we got to the hotel, many people who had just checked out and had heard of the attack; were going back inside and frantically trying to get a room back. It was like an ant hill. No one knew exactly what was going on. We secured a room but was told that it would be afternoon before we could get into it. In the meantime, we joined the throngs of people gathered around the televison in the lobby. We watched in utter confusion and disbelief as the second plane flew into the second tower.
From the hotel lobby
Then when the third plane hit the Pentagon, I had the most dire feeling of dread I have ever felt. And utter helplessness. I wanted to be home with my husband and daughter. I knew they would be frantic with worry but I could not communicate with them. Those of us in that room bonded together and tried to help each other make sense of what looked and felt like doomsday. It was so surreal to watch the towers come crashing down ... knowing that just a few miles away from us what the scene must be like. People trying to save others, people dying. What we now call Ground Zero.
When we finally got into our room we were exhausted but neither of us could rest. We couldn't bear to watch any more of the ghastly scenes on television and yet we could not stop watching. At some point we were able to get a call out to our spouses. At that point we were not sure how or when we would be able to get home. Our husbands were preparing to come get us by car. A long trip no matter how you look at it. There were no flights and I was not keen to fly again even if there had been. We had heard that all of the rental cars in the area had already been rented.
Gayle
The next morning, against all odds, we found an available rental car but there was a catch. It was across the highway, close to the airport and no cars were allowed in. We were told that if we could get to them, they had a car for us. We got the hotel shuttle to take us as far as the gate and we walked the rest of the way in. I am forever thankful to whoever invented the rolling suitcase.
Rolling our luggage into Avis car rental
We rented the car and set off to try and make our way out of the city.
Gayle drove and even though it took us a little while to find a way out, she kept her cool.
Gayle
Since we had only come prepared for two days, we had run out of clean clothes. A little ways out, we were so glad to see the Walmart sign. We stopped to buy a few necessities and since it was the end of the summer season most of the warm weather clothes were gone. I settled for a pair of 2X shorts and an oversized Tigger tshirt. I was so glad to have them too! I called them my Erkle pants since I had to roll them up and we shared a badly needed laugh to decrease the tension of the last two days.
We spent the night at a motel and the next day we picked up an acquaintance of Gayle's, who lived in Jackson but was in Maryland on September the 11th . We drove until dark and stopped again to sleep.
Second night we still couldn't stop watching
Friday morning we headed south and home. I snapped pictures all along our way to document the trip and when we finally saw the "Welcome to Mississippi" sign I could have cried with joy!
Our husbands met us in Jackson, and it was so wonderful to see their smiling faces and to be back on our home ground.
Soooo happy to see his smiling face!
"Two Oaks" Home at last!
When I got home, there was a yellow ribbon tied around the live oak tree in our front yard and a huge American flag hung. I was so thankful to be able to be home ... safe and sound with those I love best. And who love me.
I am so thankful for the wonderful friends and family that prayed for our safe return home.
It would be days before the enormity of the damage and loss would start to sink in. Almost too much to bear. But we did - as a nation - under God.
I will never take for granted the blessings in my life. It could all change in an instant. And did for so many on that day. I guess
it changed all of us in many ways. It took away our sense of security as a nation. It took away our naïveté that nothing or no one could ever hurt us. One thing it did not take away is our spirit and our belief that we can and will endure and persevere. I pray that we will never experience that kind of vunerabilty and despair again.
On Sunday, September 11, 2011, I will remember that day and say a prayer for all those that lost loved ones. It is a day we will remember
... always.
