So today's the day we all remember. I'm going to take a break from my usual posts and share my story. Everyone has a 9/11 story, and here is mine:
It was my 2nd day in the new office. I'd been working for the same company for 4 years but moved to a different location, so I was already familiar with everyone. Our Sales Manager had her radio on and heard the first reports of a plane. She and I hovered at her radio listening. More reports. More planes. So we headed next door to the office with a TV. That entire office of 25ish people here all sitting there. watching. completely silent. eerily silent.
And then I remembered my sister. She had just taken a new job in Manhattan. I knew it wasn't at the WTC, but I didn't know where or how close. I didn't even have a number. So I called my other sister. She was in a meeting, but they got her out. She had a number, called, everything was fine. But for about an hour there, I had a creepy, dark feeling, and it was pretty freakin' scary. I talked to her that night, and she told me about it all. She saw the 2nd tower fall. They had gone to the top of their building to watch the commotion after the first one fell. She started to walk away, heard a crash, turned around, and the 2nd one was gone.
She and her boyfriend, to this day, still consider themselves to have post-traumatic stress disorders because of it. But thankfully, they did not know anyone who was a victim. They had one friend who worked at the WTC, but he was late for work that day and spared.
At my work, we sat there the rest of the day in silent shock. We did our duties, but no one really spoke. No laughing, just everyone thinking. Which, if you knew about me and my co-workers, you would know how serious that is.
When I got home, I couldn't stop watching CNN. It was all the same thing over and over again, but I just couldn't look away. When I went to work the next day, my boss told me that he had had the same thing happen when he went home.
It was just complete and utter disbelief.