Remembering….

I forgot that today was September 11th.

I pulled out of my driveway to take Emma to school, and noticed the flags that the Boy Scouts put out in front of the houses on holidays. I racked my brain trying to think about what holiday it was. I asked Emma about it, but she didn’t know of any holiday either.

I turned on the radio and heard the names of all the people who had died in the tragedy being read. It took me by surprise, I gasped and then sighed. Emma wanted to know what was the matter. I couldn’t tell her for a moment, I had to wait, or I knew I was going to go from teary eyed to crying.

When they said that it had been 7 years ago, I was shocked. I felt like it was 2 or 3 years at most. Then I remembered I was pregnant with Emma at the time. I have such vivid memories from that day. I know that most people do. People can describe exactly what they were doing the moment they heard. I can too: I was flying on an airplane.

I was on my way back from Chicago. I had been there for a meeting. I left early on a non-stop flight bound for Salt Lake. About an hour into the flight the pilot came on. He said “Ladies and gentlemen, we are just over Des Moines, Iowa and we are going to go ahead and land here.” We were all confused. Why? Was there something wrong with the plane? Were we going to crash? A few minutes later he made another announcement and said the plan was fine, but there had been a “situation” in the United States.

As we landed, we saw fighter jets and National Guard pilots on the runways. I knew something was wrong, but it was hard to imagine what it could be. Immediately people started calling home, and while we were still on the plane we found out what had happened. Scott and my parents were very relieved to hear from me. They knew about the planes, but not where they had come from.

We deplaned, and everyone ran for the TVs to see what was happening. It was chaos. It was still in the early stages, and nobody was sure what was going to happen next. Were we safe in the airport in Des Moines? Nobody was sure, so they wanted to evacuate the airport. I knew we would be stuck there for a few days, so I decided to rent a car. I couldn’t wait to get home!

People were different to each other that day. Everybody talked to each other. It was like we were all friends. People made deals in the car rental lines, and drove places together. I met a couple from Utah, and we drove back to Salt Lake together. I don’t remember their names, and I never spoke to them again, but on that day it just felt normal to be friends with everyone.

Today when I turned on the radio, I was flooded with the same emotions I felt on that day 7 years ago. I am glad that I remembered. I think there are too many people in our country who have forgotten. Today we were all reminded.