9-11: Beyond Words
"There's been a horrific accident."
I was sitting in my office listening to Sara McLachlan's Building a Mystery, programming a software application when a co-worker rushed in and softly muttered those words the morning of September 11th.
I knew when we couldn't load cnn.com or msnbc.com it was something bigger. The rest we all know is tragically, history.
From business trips to broadway get-aways, many NYC excursions ended with a trip to the World Trade Center observation deck to marvel at the magnificent NYC skyline.
So shortly after the 9-11 attacks we paid homage to sacred Ground Zero. To pay our respects. To see for ourselves.
The sight, smell and sounds of Ground Zero was and still is indescribable. Yet permananetly etched in my mind. I can't begin to articulate something that is beyond words. Bigger than words.
So on this 9-11 anniversary I am sharing photos of our Ground Zero homage. The pictures speak more than I could ever begin to.
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| The sacred ground where the World Trade Center towers once stood. |
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| One of many tributes near Ground Zero. |
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| The sphere which once stood in front of the WTC was salvaged. |
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| A cross made out of WTC beams assembled in front of the viewing area. |
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| Neighboring buildings covered in ash and dust being cleaned. |
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| The NYFD heroes were still putting out secondary fires. |
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| The NYC skyline at sunset with Lady Liberty in the background. |
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| I heart you NYC. |
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That morning is burned into my brain. I was trading on a desk, I got to work just as the first plane hit. Kevin (another trader) said America is under attack. I didn't think it was a big deal. (I figured some pilot got drunk...) Then we all watched as the second plane hit. We were all shocked...I had trades pouring into my computer. All of our lines went under the WTC so nothing worked. We kept waiting for the NYC to announce they would not be opening, then my boss heard about the Pentagon plane and sent us all home, by the time I got there, both towers were gone...Shock, the world changed forever. I will never forget that morning.
Wow, beautiful pictures. I too clearly remember that day. I was actually in NY for work (not the city but just outside). I work for a cell phone company and when the director of the switching equipment tore off out of the conference room we knew something bad had happened. All the phones went down due to the shear volume of calls in the building and we took off for home which took much longer to get to that day then ever before. We were able to get text messages out on the network that day to talk to loved ones. We drove for what seemed an eternity listening to the horror on the radio. It was one of the worst days I can remember. :(
Those are wonderful pictures, although very sad..
Whoa. Beautiful. Beyond words myself...
An unforgettable event, it's an afternoon which you'll probably never forget. Even if it was on as good as the other side of the globe the news hit instantly here as well, as school was about to end the only talk going around was the WTC being hit by a plane. As the news in the evening went by and continued for pretty much 3 days afterwards non-stop it continued the scenes of something which should never happen again are burned into your mind.
That was beautiful! Thank you for that... My heart continues to break when I let my mind wander back to that day. In a way, I think I lost what was left of my innocence that day.
And thanks for stopping by my blog. :)
Thank you for this. I grew up in NYC, and much of my family of origin still lives there.
I feel this day as an American citizen *and* as someone whose hometown is NYC.
I found your blog today clicking around :)
I am a SAHD and enjoyed several of your posts.
Today's post was very touching.
Bradley
The Egel Nest
thanks for the pictures. I didn't take any when I was there 2 1/2 months later, because it just felt wrong to me, but now I wish I had. Yours pay a beautiful tribute. Thanks.
Lovely photos. I remember that sphere when we were there. It makes me sad to see it banged up like that, but also sort of happy that it survived as well as it did.
Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
For our generation, it was the defining day. The day which marks the before, the after.
I imagine this is something like what my parents' generation felt about Kennedy's assassination.
I too remember vividly my circumstances of that day.
Wow, thank you. I forgot it was tomorrow. My husband has a coworker whose son is due tomorrow. I hope he holds on another day.
It amazes me that it happened 6 years ago. I remember vividly what I was doing at the time. The day before I was released from the hospital after having my son. I was at the grocery store and on my way home I noticed that traffic was backed up on the street. I wondered if there was an accident. The back up was due people leaning out of their cars chatting with each other asking one another if they had heard about the events. I was confused because I hadn't yet heard the news so I was trying to see what people were excited about. Thank you for the homage and tribute. We need never forget.