Introduction:
I’d like to take an opportunity to thank 一粒麦子 for sharing her poignant testimony about 911 and her personal experience in my blog. Five year later she and millions of New Yorkers across all walks of life couldn’t help but revisit the gut-wrenching day of Sept. 11, 2001 and look further back their life once again. The sorrow and loss have gravitated all of us together to reexamine our purposes and priorities.
The message is clear and aloud that hatred destroyed the majestic Twin Towers in New York City but it has not annihilated or dented the human spirits of love, care and share. If history serves us right, the prediction would be that only love can conquer human heart neither killing nor intimidating would.
纵然平行 –
Your article reminds me about a mentor in my life who perished with WTC during that horrific terrorist attack five years ago. She was one of those 658 Cantor Fitzgerald employees who lost their innocent lives that morning. I am inspired to compose below story to pay tribute to my mentor and 9/11.
It is a beautiful day. The sky is as clear and blue as it was in the morning five years ago. Nevertheless my heart felt extremely heavy today. Not sure that’s because today is the 5th anniversary of 9/11 or what happened during previous nights. At lunch time, the heavy weight of my heart had turned to an irresistible urge to pay a visit at the WTC site on this 5th anniversary of 9/11. While waiting for elevate, I met Terry, a senior manager, who was also going to WTC. “Why not we walk there together?” Terry proposed merrily. We walked couple blocks in this bustling Wall Street area toward WTC site.
The sound of the Bells of Remembrance danced in the air not faraway on Liberty Street. My mind was drifting back to years ago as if a movie of my past had played in my head. It was in early September. Fred and I just started dating after work. It was there he had joyfully held my hand 1st time in our dating. I bought that gorgeous camera. With it, he had flashed pictures of me like movie with the splendid evening scenes of Twin Towers as background. We rode the seemingly endless escalate toward street level. We shopped. After dinner at various restaurants, we sat together and chatted in the flower garden right between the Twin Towers. Life was full of dreams and fond memories. At the end of the day when we had to part, he would often stand there to see me go through the turnstile of path train and then head back to his home. I could still see the hearted smiles on his face and feel the warmth of his strong hand.
“Look, there is the memorial site!” Terry’s announcement turned off my movie player. In front of us, lay the huge “hole of the ground”. Through the fences, I could see people in fine dark uniform moving toward the flower bedded memorial site. At the high edges of this hole, there were many high volume beams radiate in the sun. There were no trace of the once hallmarks of New York City that had my footsteps. “Let’s walk around to find the entrance”, I suggested.
As we passing through the multitudes outside the 9/11 visitor center, I suddenly poured my thoughts out to Terry, “It’s sad we would always hear people lost their loved ones because we would never hear anyone hurray about getting rid of most closed enemy through 9/11.” “True, each family is in different levels of difficulties.” Terry concluded. My mind was packed with a wife’s passionate and proud recount of her loving husband’s heroic actions and determinations to succeed in getting back United Flight 93 from the book “Let’s Roll”. I couldn’t help longing that I could always have the same kind of feeling as that of Lisa the author about my energetic, talented and brainy Fred, who is unfortunately ensnared in the web lately and temporarily impaired to differentiate fancy from reality. Should history repeat, which book would I write for Fred?
In the afternoon, a commemoration of the 5th Anniversary of September 11 was held in the conference center. The chairman of the September 11th Commemorative Committee and the guest speaker both delivered speeches with theme “We Recover and Rebuild” that had drawn long applauding. The chorus presented the musical Tribute with selection “Living in the Promised Land”:
Livin' in the Promised Land
Our dreams are made of steel
The prayer of every man
Is to know how freedom feels
There is a winding road
Across the shifting sand
And room for everyone
Livin' in the Promised Land
Give us your daily bread
We have no shoes to wear
No place to call our home
Only this cross to bare
We are the multitudes
Lend us a helping hand
Is there no love anymore
Livin' in the Promised Land
My heart was pounding. With the image of the new # 7 WTC building on the exhibit panels, the revitalization is evident.
Tonight, our building will glow in three colors - red, white, and blue, the colors of the nation’s flag, which symbolize Hope, Passion, and Determination. Holding my Tiffany wedding band and engagement ring in my palm, I seemed to hear the courageous and resilient messages “We Recover and Rebuild” again. After all I haven’t been wearing them for more than two years already. But tomorrow they will shine again on my finger. My heart will be beaming with same three colors. For I know, I won’t be alone in revitalizing our institution.
Thanks for sharing your insights about 9/11. I could not agree with you any less about your conviction of loved ones. You are right about cherishing them in our normal daily life and even in time of difficulty. Tonight, I will tell my husband one more time that I love him dearly.
一粒麦子
Actually I think that it is an honor for my story to be published on your blog. Your introduction brought out the exact messages I wanted to convey in first place.
By the way, like many people I enjoy your writings about New York City, those places that we have taken for granted portrayed under your words are just so romantic and wonderful for making us to love this great city more and love our lives more. Expect more to come.
一粒麦子