Remembering 9/11

The past few days, I've been thinking a lot about how life has changed in the last five years. I remember that day so vividly. I remember turning on the TV and seeing the images first on the Spanish news station. I was trying to figure out what had happened when I realized that I could change the channel to an English station. That didn't help relieve the confusion. I remember the news anchors not being sure what was going on. I watched as the second plane hit. I called Aaron several times that morning as the events unfolded. When he came home for lunch, we sat together on the couch with tears rolling down our cheeks. Today, as I read my friend's account of her experiences, living in New York at the time, the same tears came once again.

I remember the sadness at the loss of life. I remember the panic of a friend whose sister was in Manhattan that day. I remember Esteban, in kindergarten, telling me how his teacher talked to the students after an emergency faculty meeting was called. The next day, they taught the students to sing God Bless the USA. He told me it made him feel happy-sad when he sang that song. I remember the pride and the closeness we, as Americans felt. I remember meeting at the church on the following Friday and singing God Bless America with strangers and friends. I remember seeing every flag flown at half staff. I remember how long it took for life to go on. For days, there were no airplanes, no commercials, only news updates.

At the time, Aaron was managing a roofing company that worked primarily in Mexico, the $1,000,000 in contracts he had set up were withdrawn immediately, as companies didn't know what the economy's future was going to be. Consequently, his company closed the office in Texas, leaving us to figure out another way to support our family. Aaron decided to open his own company and try to stay a float.

I watched The 9/11 Commission Report on the History channel. I found it very interesting. They went through rise of Al Queida, how unprepared we were as a nation, and minute-by minute outline of the events of that day. I think we are a smarter nation now. I hope and pray that we learned from the experience and we never forget what it felt like that day, years ago, when all of our lives changed forever.