As a mother looking back...

Today marks 9 years since that dreadful day. I was 17. Just a teenager. I remember all too well how I felt when I found what was going on. I was scared, angry, confused, shocked, sad...the wide range of emotions I felt was overwhelming. I was driving from my highschool that morning to my second period teacher cadet class at a nearby elementary school. I heard the news on the radio. To be honest I thought it was something from the past. No way would anyone dare to attack the US. No way was this going on right now. I soon realized that it was indeed happening right at that moment. The rest of the day was spent clinging to friends and watching the TV coverage in awe.

As I look back on that day now as a mother I feel even more emotion. There were babies in that building. There were mothers in that building. There were children who went to bed that night without parents and parents who went to bed without their children. As a mother looking back it hurts me to the core to imagine that. There were parents who escaped the initial attack but who felt a duty to help in the rescue efforts and gave their life that day. Their kids went to bed that night without a mommy or daddy and I'm sure in that moment it didn't matter that the rest of the country was calling their mom or dad a hero. As a mother looking back I can't imagine being one of those mothers who dropped my precious baby off at daycare and walked across the street to my job only to look out of the window an hour later to the horror of the building collapsing with my child still inside. As a mother looking back I can't imagine being a mother that day.

May we never forget. May we never forget that for a time we were all united. May we never forget that for a time there was no Jew, Muslim, Christian, black, white, mexican. May we never forget that for a time everyone pulled together. May we always remember that for a time we all supported each other and hurt for each other.

Never Forget, Always Remember