Hi friends!
What a day! Let me start off by saying this won’t be my usual post. But I think you’ll resonate on some level.
It’s the 12th anniversary of 9/11….a day that really changed my world and pretty much all americans. I had a dentist appointment at 9am. As I watched some morning news coverage and made a quick breakfast I noticed my coveted Keurig coffee maker wasn’t working. It had no power. I fiddled around for a while before declaring it dead. Knowing it was a day that so many were walking around with heavy hearts I couldn’t possibly be upset that the coffee maker died. And so without caffeine I headed to the dentist office. Next thing you know the x-ray machine wasn’t working properly and we had to take about 10 bitewings before it finally registered. Again, no reason to sweat the small stuff on such day of remembrance. Well, after my cleaning the dentist did an exam and discovered a crown had cracked and I’ll need to have it replaced. $1,600? No problem. How could I be upset? It’s 9/11.
So off I go to driving to the bus stop to catch my bus and head into Manhattan for work. (Shh! Don’t tell my boss but I stopped at Bed Bath and Beyond and bought another Keurig on the way to the bus stop=)
I drove past Rescue 5 Firehouse. (This is not my normal route) I saw the beautiful flowers and candles outside the firehouse. Rescue 5 lost 11 of their members on 9/11. By now it was noon and I was feeling such a churning of anxiety and sadness in my stomach.
I got on the bus and then realized I would be taking the exact route I took 12 years ago today. It made me re-live that morning as I watched the second plane hit. My bus never made it into the city that day. And for that I’m blessed.
Eventually my bus traveled along right beside the Trade Center and Memorial. As we were stopped at a light, I noticed a firetruck to the right. I snapped a picture. Then noticed on the window there was a decal that said “Remembering Ruben “Dave” Correa 9-11-01″
I googled his name. He was also a Staten Islander. Someone I never knew who happened to live in the same borough as me. I got off the bus and walked toward my office building where I noticed an american flag all the way at the top. Apparently it’s always been there and I just never noticed it.
I think about how running has helped me process my feelings and anxiety during last October’s Hurricane Sandy and then this past April’s Boston Marathon bombing. I can only think how running would have helped me process my feelings in the aftermath of 9/11. I’ll continue to reflect and remember the event of Sept 11 this month, culminating with my participation in the Tunnel to Towers 5k that I mentioned back in this post.
Question: Where were you and how did you first discover what was happening on 9/11/01?
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