20 years ago today the world changed forever.
Being that we are already 20 years removed from that day I realize that anyone from the age of 0-30 might not have any memory of that day, little memory of that day, or not have been old enough to fully remember the difference in the world before and after that day.
It is because of this that I decided to write my own personal story of that day and reflections on that day for reasons of historical preservation. It would be awesome if more people had done that about Pearl Harbor so people like me, born after the fact, would have an understanding of how it affected the common civilian of the time.
In September of 2001 I had been married for about 9 months. My husband was in the army and was stationed at Menwith Hill in England. We had lived together in San Angelo during his AIT. AIT ended over the summer. I moved home to live with my parents in Lowell, Indiana while he left to go to England. The only reason that I didn't go with him at the time was because we married after he had already joined the army, so I wasn't on his orders to move. We were waiting for the army to add me to the orders and pay for me to fly overseas.
On September 11, 2001 I was at my parent's house alone. Both my parents were at work and my sister was at college in southern Indiana. I was sound asleep that morning until I heard the phone ring. This was back before everyone had a cell phone. I didn't own one. It was the house phone that rang. I answered and it was my mother-in-law. She asked me "Are you awake?" I told her I had been sleeping. She said, "I was watching the morning news program and they were talking about a plane hitting the world trade center in New York. As they were talking about how an accident like that could have happened another plane hit the other tower. You have to get up and turn on the TV." I don't remember what I said back. All I remember is the feeling of terror that we could possibly be under attack. I was thinking of a war and how my husband might have to go to one. The thought had never occurred to me before this moment. I ran into the living room and turned the TV on. I could not believe what I was seeing. Then the phone rang again. This time it was my best friend, Kari on the phone. She and I watched in horror together as we saw people hang out of the towers on live TV, smoke billowing out from behind them. We tried to figure out a way that they could be rescued 'will they take a helicopter to the roof or something? look there is a helicopter hovering around. maybe...' Then we saw the people jumping. It was like we were watching a movie but this was real. This was live TV. This was happening. How could it be happening???
Then the news cut to the Pentagon. They reported another plane hit there. We screamed. "Oh my God! This isn't over! We are under attack! Where are they going to hit next? How many are there? Will they attack Chicago? My dad is there. I have family there. Oh my God!" Next thing we know there is another report about a plane down in a field in Pennsylvania. They are telling us on the news that the plane was also headed to Washington DC. And then the towers fell. Now we cried. Kari and I cried together on the phone as we watched the first tower fall and then the second. We watched the cloud of debris spread. We watched people run. People that were covered in ash and blood running out of the city and crossing the bridges. We cried and cried. "Oh my God! All those people in there. All those people at the windows. Could they be alive? Surely not. They must be buried if they did survive. Oh my God!"
That night all I remember was still watching the news. (I was glued to the TV all day). By then they were showing footage from different angles because they had gotten footage from different cameras. They were showing the planes hit over and over. I remember that they grounded all flights across the country and I remember the terror I felt when I heard planes going over the house. My parents and I ran outside in the darkness and looked up at the sky. We saw military fighter jets flying low and fast over our house in the direction of Chicago. We figured they must be protecting the bigger cities.
Later when I talked to my husband I learned that he was sent home from work because he was still new and in training. I learned from him that it might now be a very long while until the military got around to working on a silly little task like getting a spouse on military orders. There was much bigger things for them to focus on. And I completely understood that.
Two days after 9/11 was my 21st birthday. My friend Kari and her fiance Eric insisted on taking me out to have a good time. We chose a Mexican restaurant and bar to go to first. I remember walking in and looking around. This was my first time going to the 'bar area' and I wasn't sure what to expect. People were sitting in silence over their beers. The TV was on CNN and they were talking about the attacks. You could hear a pin drop. It was a very somber time. I went to the bar to order my first drink but there wasn't much to celebrate. It felt wrong to even be happy.
After a few days I was tired of being without my husband and I knew I wouldn't get to be with him unless I paid my own way. I had no idea how long it would take the army if I waited. So I booked a ticket. I remember paying almost 800 dollars for the round trip ticket. I paid for round trip because it was cheaper than one way. I just never used the return flight.
On October 8, 2001 I arrived at the airport to fly from O'Hare to London Heathrow. This was my first time in an airport since 9/11. The first thing I remember is how much security there was. The lines were long and slow because they were searching everyone and every bag. And I remember that no one minded or complained. I think every traveler wanted to feel safe. I boarded the plane. This was less than one month since the attacks and all I could think about was how the hijackers used planes that were on long distance destinations so they would have a lot of fuel. I realized I was on a long distance flight and I was leaving out of a major city. I was extremely nervous. I prayed a lot. When I got to my seat I was sitting at the window. The middle seat was empty and on the aisle was a man from the middle east. I knew he was because he talked to me with a very heavy accent and he told me he was from Pakistan. I am sure he was telling me that to ease my nerves but being that 9/11 just happened I was on edge. I kept thinking he could be part of a hijacking plot and I could die at any moment. I just kept praying. Of course, all was fine and I made it into London as the sun was rising there on October 9th.
If there is one thing that I remember fondly about those three weeks that I spent in the United States after 9/11 it is that everyone came together. There was no democrat or republican at that time. No one disagreed about what had happened to us. We were an attacked America. We were ONE and everyone acted like we were one. Flags were flown everywhere. People attached them to their cars. Everyone was in agreement that we were going to fight. We weren't going to back down. People everywhere enlisted in the services. Doctors and nurses from across the country flew to New York to help. It was the first and last time I have ever seen anything like the unity that we had in that moment.
Since then I have learned a lot about 9/11 that makes me suspicious of the official story. I do not believe a plane hit the Pentagon. There is no physical way that a plane hit since the size of a plane vs the size of the impact on the building was so very different. The impact on the building was not wide enough to account for the wing span. I do not trust the official story about the hijackers on the planes. I do not believe the towers fell just because a plane hit. But I don't think we will ever know the true story and maybe we aren't meant to. I want to focus today, the 20th anniversary of that day, on the unity that we had. I want to remember the innocent people that died. I want their families to know that I care and that I think about their loved ones often. I want them to know that there are people like me that are old enough to remember and that I WILL NEVER FORGET!
🙏 AMEN
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