9-11-2001, A day we’ll never forget

9/11/2001… I will most certainly never forget. 

We flew home from my brother-in-law’s wedding in Baltimore, MD on September 10^th, 2001.  Just one day before terrorists boarded US planes and crashed them into our precious landmarks.

My daughter was just 4 months old and I was terrified to take her on a plane from the get-go. Imagine my horror when I woke up the next morning to this horrific nightmare.

My husband had to be at work early, so he was up getting ready, and watching the news when the first plane hit.  He came in to wake me up.  We were watching the news live when the second plane hit.  Shortly after, my husband left for work.  But I sat and watched in utter shock as the events of the day unfolded.  When the third place went down in PA.  When the plane hit the Pentagon.  I spent the whole day, and even the days and weeks after watching and waiting for news on any survivors.  It was horrific, terrible, frightening, appalling, and heartbreaking all at the same time.

In the months, and honestly, years to follow, I couldn’t shake the feeling of sorrow and looming dread. I specifically remember sitting at a restaurant in Mission Valley with my Mom.  It was a rainy day, and my sweet baby girl was sleeping in her car seat.  I began to weep. It certainly was not the first, or last time I would cry over this.  It was just so disconcerting to know that my baby was going to grow up in this world where people could have so much hate in their hearts. That they would have so much anger towards the United States, the country that we live in, that they would hijack our planes and try to destroy our country, our dignity and bring us down.  I could only imagine how the people of New York, and those who suffered loss were feeling. 

It has now been 22 years, and honestly, I can’t see that our world has not changed much. People still hate and try to destroy one another. There is unrest in this world, and I am very scared.  I also have a 15 year old, and he’s living in this same, scary, divided world. We have a virus floating around that has taken lives, taken a toll on our economy, closed our businesses and schools, has kept us inside and away from the ones we love.  Our world is at war with one another. There is even more hate and violence and innocent lives being lost all for what? For power? For money? We are destroying our world and I don’t see any way to escape it unless we can form some sort of unity in our our own country, our own government.

I am generally an optimist, I truly am.  But I’m also a realist.  I just don’t know how we’re going to get through these times.  I wish I had some answers.  I wish I could wave a magic wand and find the answers on uniting our country and humankind alike. 

But unfortunately, I don’t.  So, I will continue to be a good person.  I will continue to be kind and teach my children to be kind, helpful and upstanding citizens.  We will give more than we take. We will treat each and every person with dignity and respect. We see no color, and we will love one another and make a difference in this world.  For now, this is all we can do.