Thirteen years ago tonight I was loading my car for the AM drive to Manhattan. That morning of 911 was clear, crisp and beautiful. Until...... And I still tear up every time I think of that day and how many different awful emotions clouded my day, and my thoughts which panicked me. I was obsessed with one task. I had to get home. If I had to walk, I had to get home. No cells as the main tower was in rubble on the ground. I just had to get home. I needed to talk to my wife, my Dad, my office, but no signal. The turnpikes were parking lots and the bridges closed. The Lincoln Tunnel was locked down. The Statue of Liberty by days end was encased in that putrid smog from the fires, except at times for her arm which from time to time poked through to the heavens. I remember seeing that arm through binoculars and wishing I had a camera. By the end of the day I was wishing for a lot more, access to my car, a cold bottle of water, a sandwich, and answers. There were no answers. What we didnt know was scarier than what we knew. Home. That was my only goal. Be with family. Keep them close. Protect. By the time I could get my car out of parking, both towers were down and the sky was streaked with jet contrails. Today we know it was the planes of NORAD, flying their first real mission, many of them Canadian fighter pilots, scrambled to defend the coast of the United States. That had never happened since we founded NORAD. We all know them as the website that tracks Santa Claus online on Christmas Eve. They were fueled up, fully armed, and flying the real deal, defend to the death the coast and the USA. How many years had they drilled, yet probably felt they would never need to do their mission, as who in their right mind would attack the USA? Unsung heroes of 911. You could see them in the sky over Manhattan. Thats my big memory. I hope they know how important they were to us that day. I was in awe looking up at them flying low altitude recon over New York, like in a Hollywood movie. We took so much for granted back then. We were so innocent. We waltzed through airports, carried knives on planes, always kept our belts and shoes on, could change a name on a plane ticket, could trade flights at a whim, and we felt safe. Until... But today on 9/10 the world was still innocent and we hadnt yet met the beast up close My wish for you all, all of you, is that this 9/10 you have a wonderful day and live your day like we used too, when we still felt the way we did on 9/10/01. That is the day that I choose to remember Tomorrow Id prefer to forget ever happened. And to be safe I have grounder my Texas Staff, closed the border to them, and grounded my local sales team. Those bastards who died in those pilot seats still are messing with my life. But all I could think last week as I thought of my employees and the words coming out of the State Department, were their families and the words. Home. Protect. Close. Family. So today, my people work in the safety of their offices We are sitting this one out Call me a coward I just cant forget yesterday Like it just happened Tomorrow God Bless those who stand on that wall and keep us safe In our shining city on the hill
Posted on: Wed, 10 Sep 2014 10:07:03 +0000
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