Just as I will always remember September 11th, I will remember visiting the memorial of that day. Walking in to see the memorial fountains I was overwhelmed with emotion and could not contain the tears and I let them fall along with the endless waterfall. Standing there at the grave of 2,998 people who died that day.
It was the first thing Markus wanted to see in NYC and it made quite an impression on him as well. He stayed close to me and kept hugging me.
I remember how my sister Darlin called me that September morning before Markus was even born. We were both crying. She kept asking, "Do you think everyone will make it out?" I remember trying to do the math in my head, the towers were 110 stories high, and I was guessing how many people were on each floor, and how there was no way everyone could get out.
We were talking on the phone watching the news when the second tower fell. The news showed how the streets were covered in ash and debris from the buildings. And all the people. Almost all of them were covered from head to toe in dust. Some had face masks on and some were bleeding. These were the survivors. I saw these dust covered faces and could tell they were anxious to be with their families.
I had been a mother for over six years, but I became a mom that day. Both protecting and being with Morgen and Max was the only thing that mattered to me. There was never a stronger pull to be with those that I loved. Parents with children. Nothing else mattered.
A few months later I realized I wanted to have another baby. I thought about that today staring at the skyline that is now forever different. Twenty four hours ago I left for New York with my three boys in tow. This morning I watched my baby boy take some of his very first steps to becoming a man, he is brave, truthful and unselfish, and I thought about how much has changed in ten years.
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| {Photos courtesy of Lara Debry} |
