Where Were You?

Do you remember where you were? I imagine anyone of age couldn’t possibly forget. I was taking an art class in Evanston and driving north up along Lake Shore Drive.

What a glorious day…. I kept glancing over and smiling at the lake – it looked fabulous. The sky was clear; it was beyond beautiful. 

I was listening to a book on tape and glanced down at the clock.  It was exactly 9:00.  I pulled out the tape to listen the NewsRadio 78 – I like to follow the hourly national news report.  It was confusing to hear Dan Rather’s voice. Wasn’t he only on in the evenings? 

I couldn’t figure out what they were talking about. “The tower.” The Eifel Tower?  Finally someone said "the North Tower..." and it all became too clear. Then a reporter started fearfully shrieking in astonishment, “the tower is falling; the tower is falling down…”

Our lives were never really quite the same after that day. Who would have thought that a mammoth skyscraper of glass and steel could come tumbling down so quickly?

My cousin, Evangeline, and I had been in New York just the week before 9/11.  We had been jointly celebrating our milestone birthdays.  What a blast – we even got seats to The Producers. After all, what could be more fun than New York City in September?  

Evangeline had just mailed me her photographs of our special time together.  Included was a picture taken by some stranger of the two of us standing near the Statue of Liberty.  In the background were the twin towers.  

My darling cousin passed away in 2003. 

I haven’t returned to New York in 10 years. I just can’t. I know I should, but so many happy memories of times in New York have been overlaid with the subsequent events. Maybe some day ... although, I just don’t know if I can ever go back to New York.

I do know, that I will never forget that September.

It's remembering that unites us.