911 Rising up

As we mark the ten year anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the Twin Towers I took a moment to pay respects and to meditate on what we as a city witnessed on that fateful day. I recall it vividly as I lived a short five blocks away and saw the whole event unfold in front of me. I recall the deep grief, the unimaginable crumbling of our collective spirits as the towers and citizens succumbed to the gravity of the event. I witnessed heroism and selflessness, fear, sorrow and cries for revenge, I heard bewailing above screeching sirens and jets ripping the skies above. And I wondered like everyone else how will we ever recover from such a profound blow to our collective psyche.

10 Years after the fact and slowly it rises, steady and assuridly the towers grow daily. The mood is solemn for me, I feel that the grounds are sacred and should have been made a public space for reflection and gathering, yet the progress gives me some hope some sense of healing and reconciliation, it also makes me aware of our resilience as a city and a people that we rise above adversity no matter how it is dealt.

Peace and respect to those who lost loved ones and to those who bravely gave of themselves to help others.