10 Years

Hard to believe it has been 10 years. A decade. Sometimes it seems like yesterday…I can remember every detail of that day with more clarity than I can remember any day last week. I remember what I had for breakfast, the outfit I was wearing, the beautiful September weather, standing by the fax machine as I heard a loud noise, looked out the window and saw papers flying around, running down the stairs without having any idea what was going on…and once we got outside, I remember trying to avoid flying debris, being told by the police officer that we “were all going to f-ing die”, the smell, seeing people jump from the towers, running down the West Side Highway with thousands of New Yorkers…but most of all, I remember the all-consuming fear. All it takes is for me to see one image from that day, and it comes flooding back immediately…

Then other the other hand, sometimes it feels like a lifetime ago…we were so young, at such different times in our lives. It is almost as if I don’t remember what it was like before September 11th…I don’t recall a time when terrorism wasn’t at the forefront of my consciousness. 

My friends and I were new college graduates, ready to face the world and the big city, excited to start our first “real” jobs…to say that we all lost our innocence that day would be an understatement.  But we are the lucky ones… 

It is hard for me to watch any of the footage. I can’t imagine what it is like for people who lost their children, spouses, parents, siblings, friends, etc.  Especially now, as a mother, I cannot fathom the heartache…panic…dread…helplessness…of knowing your loved one was in the towers, and watching the events unfold.  My heart just aches for them. 

We didn’t ever go back to work at the WFC, and worked out of a hotel for about 6 months until our new offices were ready.  Here is a picture of 3 WFC…our offices were right where the ledge starts.

We didn’t get back to our apartment again until October 11th, when we were shuttled in by the military in army trucks, wearing gas masks, and told to grab as much as we could in 10 minutes. Here is a picture of our apartment taken on 9/11; our building is the one enveloped in smoke, right on the water. Crazy.

I think if there is any silver lining in these horrific events, it was how New York City, and the world, came together in the days/weeks/months after Sept. 11th.  The city thrived…if you go to downtown NYC today, it is more built-up than ever, with more restaurants, more people, more families.  And that is just one of the reasons I still love NYC so much :)

~We will never forget~

Xoxoxo