9/11 memories
It's the 12th anniversary of the attacks on 9/11/01. One thing you usually hear is people talking about what they were doing when it occurred.
I actually have a forum to write about it. Four hundred words looks better here than on a Facebook status. Plus, it's a good day to forget about doctors, hospitals, medicine and illness and remember those who lost their lives twelve years ago.
On 9/11/01, I was living in Skokie, Illinois. My plans for the day included a trip downtown to visit a friend who was working in the Sears Tower. I heard about plane one on the radio. I turned on the television but continued to get ready for the trip downtown. When I saw the second plane hit, those plans changed.
It took less than five minutes for my friend to call me and let me know she was going home. Her company was closing for the day. In fact, the entire building was evacuated. Later it was learned that the Sears Tower was on the hit list. Before 9/11, Sears Tower had easy access. You walked in, got on an elevator and went to any floor without hassle. That policy ended that day.
My daughters were both in elementary school then. The school stayed open. They felt the kids were safe there. No one felt Devonshire school was going to be the next target.
My wife, at that time, was working for a brokerage firm. A week earlier, she was in New York City for a training class. It took place in one of the smaller buildings in the World Trade Center complex. That building was badly damaged in the attack and eventually had to come down. Timing!!
That afternoon, we decided to get away from the news and went for a ride. We went to a store in Skokie. They were getting ready to close. It was 2 pm.
I asked one of there employees why they were closing. He looked at me in disbelief. "You haven't heard about the World Trade Towers"?
I told him I didn't think a Best Buy in Skokie would be the next target. They closed anyway.
As for my friend, she didn't return to work until the following Monday. She left her job less than a month later. She couldn't deal with the stress and uncertainty. She eventually moved out of Chicago and settled in a small town in Arizona. She said that day freaked her out and it never got any better.
Those are my memories of 9/11. Tomorrow, I'll go back to writing about Doctors and hospitals. Today's a day to remember those who were lost on 9/11.