Day 254
- JanaLee Cox Longhurst
- Sep 13, 2018
- 2 min read
Day 254: Do you remember what you were doing when the first plane hit the World Trade Center on this day in 2001?
I was standing in the kitchen, feeding my oldest son breakfast before school. We had the small TV in the kitchen turned to the Today Show, and my son said “Mom, look.” He pointed to the footage on the screen. “Is that really happening?”
We turned up the volume to see and hear the confusion in the newsroom as the anchors were trying to answer the same question. And then it happened again. Another plane. While we watched. It was definitely not an accident. It was definitely happening.
The feeling of recognizing the face of evil . . . the frightening uncertainty of what could happen on any day, at any time . . . the helpless inability to shield my children from it . . . and the realization that catastrophe could forever change our perspective of what happiness and security means, are lessons I learned in that moment that I will never forget.
My mother had been gone for five years by then, and I imagined how busy Heaven was that day, inundated with new arrivals. I imagined her rushing from one to another, like I had seen her do during the Teton flood. I can’t fathom how things work in heaven, but I do believe that all of heaven wept with us that day.
Each year, on this day, I remember the lives that were lost. I pray for their loved ones who were left behind to grieve. And I apply hope for our future, for our happiness, and for the continued perseverance of the human spirit in the face of evil.
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