What happened on 9/11/01

Today is the 16th anniversary of 9/11/01, a day that changed America.

In looking through my past posts I can't believe I never wrote about what happened that day.  Maybe because I prefer not dwelling on unpleasant topics?  A few years ago I began posting 'rememberance' posts on 9/11 but I never shared my experience.  Today I'm changing that.

Spouse & I lived in Arlington VA, the same town where the Pentagon is located.  Our home was exactly 6 miles from it, and we passed it every time we got on the highway.  I had been laid off for about 2 weeks and Spouse decided to take the day off "because it was so pretty outside" and spend a few hours with this sister.  Indeed, it was a beautiful September day: sunny, warm but not hot, and low humidity.  Spouse left in my BMW 325i convertible with the top down and I sat down in front of the computer to do my daily job search.

Probably a 1/2 hour later Spouse returned and yelled up the stairs to me "A plane crashed into the World Trade Center and another one crashed into the Pentagon!"  Of course I thought this was some incredible story he'd concocted to explain why he'd returned to the house, when in reality he'd probably just forgotten his wallet or something.

"What did you forget - your wallet?" I replied, sarcastically.

"No, I'm serious!  Come here!" he said with real urgency.  I immediately came downstairs and joined him in the TV room where he'd turned on the local news.  It wasn't some fantastical story he'd fabricated.  It was real.  We sat on the sofa for what seemed like days, trying to figure out what had happened.  It didn't take that long before it was clear the plane crashes weren't "accidents".  By then news of the 2nd tower being hit and the plane crash in PA was filtering in.

"I can't believe this is happening" I said, truly frightened for the 1st time in my life.  "What's next?  How will we know when its over?  Maybe we should get in the car and drive as far away (to the West) as we can" I offered.  But it was too late for that.  News reports were already showing road closures and gridlocked traffic.

Many people who work in the metro DC area ride the metro system to and from work, like my Aunt Mary, Spouse's brother, sister-in-law, and brother-in-law.  But while the metro system was still operational, most people were afraid to use it, wondering if it might be the next target.  No one liked the idea of possibly being trapped or crushed in one of the many underground tunnels.

Cell phone service was spotty with the cell towers being overloaded with attempted calls.  But we eventually received calls from my Aunt Mary, Spouse's brother and sister-in-law.  They were going to walk from their offices to a landmark in Arlington where I would pick them up.  We were unable to coordinate this with Spouse's brother-in-law who'd already begun walking.

As I drove out of our neighborhood I began hearing sirens and seeing the flashing lights of police cars.  Officers were setting up roadblocks on the main roads that would take me to the agreed upon pick-up location.  Several times I had to make an unscheduled turn, drive through a residential neighborhood, cut through a business parking lot, and even drive across a lawn and off a curb when I got trapped.  I was literally trying to beat the officers from closing me out of the area I needed to get to.  A trip that would normally take 10 minutes took me nearly an hour, but I eventually got to the rendezvous point and picked up our family.  Spouse's brother-n-law actually walked all the way to our house (more than 6 miles) where his wife (Spouse's sister) was waiting for him.

We remained glued to the TV for several days, hoping to hear answers.  All commercial air traffic was suspended for 5 days (I believe) so it was rather eerie for us to hear fighter jets occasionally pass over our home.  Spouse's mother was in Italy and due to return home that day.  Her vacation was extended not by desire, but by necessity.

In the days and weeks following the horrible tragedy there was a strengthening of America.  For a while there were no Democrats or Republicans; just Americans.  There were no rich or poor; just people grieving losses.

Each year on this date I'm always a little worried another terror attack will occur on the anniversary.  Fortunately its not happened, although many other terror attacks have occurred since then on other, seemingly unrelated dates.  Its become clear to me that terror will never end unless there's a worldwide commitment to peace and understanding.