8 years ago, you’ll hear a lot of that today. But 8 years ago seems like a lifetime, and its getting closer to being one. This is my experiance. I was in Philadelphia Attending Temple University as a Junior.It was a beautiful Tuesday morning and i had just gotten out of weight lifting class. Class ended at 9:40. There was an odd buzz in the air as i saw my then girlfriend, now wife walking towards me.
“Did you hear? she said” Then the day sped up at a lightn ing pace. First reports of a horrific plane crash, then an attack. We stood in the middle of 13th street in front of the Campus library. There was a bright yellow honda civic parked on the street, the type thats all chromed out, and souped up with a loud irritating stereo. This day that car had a crowd of people standing around it, the doors and trunk open wide to let the sound carry. The radio was blasting the sounds of news radio. The driver sitting in the car dumbfounded.
All around us people where trying to use their cell phones to call their parents. A small group of us wanted to see if we could find a TV. Jen, Myself and her friend Dan walked into Mitten hall where they had a Tv set to project on a big screen to watch the news unfold. We saw the second tower collapse on that TV then tried to make it home.
SEPTA, the transit company, had shut down the regional rail lines going in or coming out of the city while we were on the train. The train stopped in a tunnel and the conductor came over head and said our train was being check for bomb. across the aisle a young woman already jumpy broke down hysterically crying. An older gentleman in a buisness suit sat down next to her arm around her and told her everything was going to be ok. He slowly rocked her until the train got going again.
The rest of the day was spent either getting home through throngs of scared people, taking half heard bits of news and trying to formulate an opinion or make a plausible one up. Everyone has a story, but there are some that got cut short that day.
Tell your story of then, or reach out to those that are important to you. Please read Chris Penn’s Challeneg for the Day, if you had but one hour who would you write to, and what would you say.