Where Were You?

I'll never forget, I was in my den, alone, drinking a cup of tea when the phone rang and a friend told me to turn on the television. She said that a plane had flown into the World Trade Tower. Surely it was an accident, someone had flown off course and wasn't able to turn in time. Never in my wildest imagination could it have been intentional. As we know all too well now, it was.
I did not leave my house for a number of days after that fateful Tuesday. The world outside seemed a place where I did not want to be. Then came Sunday and off to mass I went with my husband by my side, I could not go alone. When we arrived, there were cards for us to take, prayer cards. I took two, praying for one did not seem like enough. As I knelt that day, tears poured from my eyes. I looked at the names on my cards, Kenneth Kumpel, 42, firefighter.....Abdoulaye Kone, 37, Windows on the World and I wondered what their last moments were like. I thought of their families and the sorrow that would forever be present in their lives.
These men and their families are now a part of my life. I keep their prayer cards in one of my books where I write pieces that inspire me in some way. When I open the book and come across the cards, I remember, not only what happened, but I remember to think of their families and hope that my thoughts somehow give them the strength that they may need at that moment.

Here we are twelve years later, still hurt, still trying to recapture life as it was even one minute before the first plane flew into the tower. So what do we do? There is no easy answer, but I came across this video and I think that it does offer something. I hope you will take a moment to watch.


May we all have eyes to see the hurt and pain of others and the hearts to feel compassion.