During the week leading up to the tenth anniversary, RENEW International reflects on 9/11 with stories, prayer, and scripture.
Ten years ago, I was working for a major international bank on the sixth floor at 4 World Trade Center. 4 World Trade Center was one of the lower black buildings that surrounded the two towers. I had finished responding to emails, and I began to review tedious budget reports. As other staff members were arriving, I heard a tremendous explosion, and our building shook. Looking out the window, I saw particles of glass and burning paper; immediately, all staff walked to the stairs and left the building.The first image that will always be with me is the surreal environment minutes after the first plane hit the north tower. It was a beautiful, clear morning with a brilliant blue sky, but there was heavy black smoke coming from the top of the north tower! No one spoke. There was no traffic noise; there were no sirens; there was just silence.
I could not bear to watch what was happening, so I walked south with a few colleagues down to the Battery. I called my wife, Janet, and asked her to tell my children that I was alright. Within two hours, both towers fell. The second image that is always with me is the thick, black smoke that surrounded us as the towers fell with a loud rumble. I left Manhattan on the Staten Island ferry with my colleagues and we went to the home of one of them, where I stayed the night. I was finally able to return to my home the next day.
I wish I had gone home that evening. There was a spontaneous Mass at Church that evening, and my entire family attended. I should have been there to pray and thank God that I had escaped.
It has been a long and emotional ten years for me. For the first several years, I thought about that horrible day while going to work, during lunch, coming home, and before going to sleep. I thought and prayed for the loved ones who never made it home that day. I was depressed, and I became very anxious and worried about my family because I feared that one of them would be suddenly killed in an accident and never have a chance to say goodbye, just like the victims of 9/11.
In 2005, I left my career on Wall Street and was very fortunate to begin a new career at RENEW. I am convinced that my experiences at RENEW, the interaction with a kind and generous staff, and participation in a valuable pastoral ministry have made me a better person and a much better Catholic. I am now more thankful for all the support that Janet, my children, and other family members and friends offered me ten years ago and continue to offer to this day.
I will never forget the tragedy of September 11, 2001 and I am not sure how I will emotionally experience this Sunday’s anniversary. I will remember and pray for all those who have suffered, for the thousands whose earthly lives ended in an instant, and for their families and friends. I cannot even attempt to understand how they feel and suffer.
