Remembering 9-11 (belatedly)

The post by Aurie prompted me to expand on a prior post concerning September 11. Though it is after the anniversary of the tragic event, I decided to write it anyway. Before I jump into the memory, Hardbeatnews.com had this story about remembering the Caribbean victims of 9-11.

Like I had said before, I still remember driving to work that morning. Back then I took a series of back roads that connected to a major intersection that put me on Flamingo Drive in Broward County. I remember waiting at the stop sign before making one of my customary turns, and turning the radio on. I caught the news item in midstream and the only thing I could have discerned at that time was that a plane crashed into the World Trade Center. I dismissed it thinking that it was one of those small twin engine planes that clipped the roof or something. I got to work and the receptionist asked if I heard about the plane crash. I said yes and then thought I heard her say something about a second crash. I thought she was mistaken. So I went to my office turned the radio on with the intention of getting the full story and of course went on the internet. Of course that was when I fully became aware of the tragedy. And, at that time of the morning the news was still sketchy. So there was a lot of surmising and supposing. As the morning unfolded I learnt more as did the rest of the nation I assume, and started understanding what really went on. The news of the other two planes broke throughout the course of the day and the entire office was shell-shocked.

Other things I remember from that day was a discussion where someone said they thought it was not hard for the terrorists to do what they did in taking the planes because security can be lax at the airports. I can also remember saying to co-workers that the ideas for these actions came from some of the movies we watch and I named The Siege as an example (with Denzel Washington, Annette Benning and Bruce Willis). I remember saying about how I felt that this gave people ideas. And I remember driving home along Flamingo heading to Hiatus with tears in my eyes. I remember a Stevie Wonder song playing and the more it played the more the tears came. Years later, I can’t remember why that song in particular brought tears but it wasn’t the song it was the tragedy. I remember talking with my daughter’s mom and telling her I couldn’t talk to her right then because I was too upset and in a depressed yet reflective mood on the state of the country, the world. I remember praying not only for those people who were caught in the towers especially the ones who just knew they were going to die and that there was no way they could be saved with that unbearable heat. I also remember praying that no Jamaicans were involved in the carrying out the massacre as I knew the US would lash out.

I remember my dad calling from Jamaica trying to get a hold of me to see if I was alright. He must have called everybody he knew until a cousin got a hold of me and I sent word to let him know I was okay. I sugarcoated it by telling her to tell him I am so many miles away in Florida and this is several states away. Truth be told I was wondering if any attacks could have been in Florida as well. I for one didn’t think we were immune and certainly didn’t think that anywhere was safe. Later I found out that the President may have been in Florida at the time (memory a little fuzzy on that detail).

I remember talking with my step-dad and he pointed out that we could have easily been in New York instead of living in Florida. I mean, think about it. Most Jamaicans who migrate usually end up in Florida or New York. If when he did migrate he chose NY, then that is where I would have been too when my mother filed for us. He pointed out that he could have been driving a cab in NY for example and gotten a fare near Ground Zero. Or, maybe I would have secured a job in one of those buildings. Who knows, we could have been there he pointed out.

Two things drove that point home. One was the fact that a lady in my office worked years ago in one of the towers. She was even telling us about the elevator system and how it worked with different elevators going to specific floors and how fast they were. I remember this point more than any because the elevators in our building at the time were so slow you could walk up and down ten times on foot before the elevator got you there. The second point that brought home 9-11 that day was when we called a company that we do business with to make an inquiry. We were asked to be patient as the office that handled the issues we inquired about was in NY and that office is now gone…………….