As we are sitting here today talking to our children about what happened on 9-11-2001, it is all so vividly clear in our minds. I want our children to know how significant that day is in our country's history. I want them to know where their parents were and how they felt. So for that reason, I wanted to write about where we were on that day 10 years ago.....
We were still newlyweds, just the night before we had celebrated 6 months of being married. We lived in our small little apartment in Taylorsville. Patrick was still in school at the LDS Business College and I worked just a few blocks away at a Dr.'s office. Patrick had left for school before I had even gotten out of bed. I got up and got ready for work, and when I got into my car, I had a CD in to listen to, so I never heard the radio. I had no idea what was going on. I walked into my office that I worked in, and went over to my desk, put my purse in my drawer and heard someone a few doors down crying. Not sure why, I continue getting ready for my long day at work. Then the girl who had the desk next to mine came running down the hall with a radio and was frantically trying to plug it in. I made some comment about if she was gonna jam out all day to the radio or something and she just gives me this horrified look and asks me if I knew what had happened that morning. I said no, and she told me about the planes flying in to the World Trade Center towers and how they had collapsed and that America was being attacked. My heart sunk. We sat there listening to the news coverage in shock and disbelief about what had just happened in New York City, Washington, D.C, and Pennsylvania.
Patrick had heard about the first plane hitting the first tower on the radio on his way to school. When he walked onto school, all the classrooms had the news coverage on the T.V.'s and everyone was glued to it, many were crying. The teachers had all cancelled classes, but everyone was still just sitting, watching what was happening. Patrick saw the news coverage of the second plane hitting the tower and then minutes later saw the towers collapse. He called me at work and we talked about it for a few minutes and it just all seems so unbelievable that it was all happening. Soon after, he left school and walked the 2 blocks over to my office to see me before going home.
We still had patients to see that day. Some patients called and cancelled their appointments because the fear of another attack, even in Salt Lake City was very real and people did not want to leave their houses. Most things closed that day, schools, malls, public transportation. No one knew what to expect. But we still saw about half of our patients for the day. I will always remember one patient in particular that I saw that day. I don't remember her name, but I do remember that she had come in for her routine annual exam. I worked for an OB/GYN and due to some problems she was having, it was protocol to run a pregnancy test on her. I put her in the room to wait for the Dr. and went to the lab to run the pregnancy test, and it came up positive. She was pregnant. I always was a little worried when I had to tell patients news like this because you just never know how they might react. I went back to her room and told her she was pregnant. She burst into tears and hugged me and told me how they had been trying to have a baby for so long and she didn't think it would ever happen. And to get such great news on such a horrible day was just amazing for her. She told me it gave her hope. She hugged me for a long time, and we stood there and cried together for a minute. This perfect stranger and me hugged and cried and she touched my heart.
In the days that followed, I was an emotional reck! All the news coverage was just overwhelming. My heart broke as I listened to those who had lost loved ones, to the children that lost their mom or dad. Watched people jumping to their deaths from hundreds of stories up in the air. Listening to the phone calls that were made by the passengers of the planes that crashed that day, calling their wives, husbands, mothers, or fathers to say goodbye and tell them they loved them, and sometime only able to leave messages on answering machines for their families to hear later. My heart actually ached for these families that I never even knew. Patrick and I sat every night just watching the news and listening to the stories and holding each other. Things like this made you realize how quickly everything can change and how precious our loved ones are.
For the rest of that week, and maybe longer, I don't remember... one of the radio stations that I listened to started playing "God Bless the USA" over and over again. Not another song was played, just that one. I listened to it over and over again and never got tired of hearing it. It was awesome! The pride of our country and the unity we saw was amazing. I loved it.
I didn't expect today to be so emotional about this anniversary. But as I watch the news footage all over again and try to explain to my children what happened and why it was such a tragedy, I find a knot in my throat and compassion in my heart thinking of the events of 9-11. I believe that in the mist of this horrible tragedy, the Lord provided many miracles. The stories of survival.... miracles. The First Responders who ran in to help... miracles. Normal everyday citizens pulling together to help one another in need... miracles. Even in our countries darkest hour, the Lord continued to bless His children.
I will NEVER forget that day. It planted in me an enormous sense of pride and gratitude for our country and the freedom we have.
I can without a doubt say that I AM proud to be an American.
God Bless America!
