September Eleventh

I woke to NPR saying something about a small plane crashing into a building. I hit the snooze.

I walked my son into his kindergarten class and heard the women in the office talking about a passenger plane that flew into the World Trade Center and five people had been killed.

I drove to my daughter's school and listened on the radio to something bad that had happened in New York City. A plane. World Trade Center. Another plane. The Pentagon. What was going on?

I walked into my daugter's school and saw teachers huddled around a T.V in the office. They were very quiet. Stunned. Three planes. We watched the building collapse. Who did this? One teacher uttered quietly, "We're going to war."

I was scared. Were we next? My husband works downtown close to the government building. I needed my family to be together in one spot. I went back and took my son out of his class, I wasn't the only parent that decided this was the best thing to do and none of the teachers questioned me.

It was a very sad and scary day. I shielded my children from the news and didn't let them see the cover of Time magazine. I didn't want them to see the bodies falling out of the building, it was just too severe. Those were people dying. It wasn't a movie, it was real.

I gave birth to a baby three months later. Our country was at war and searching for justice. Other babies were being born to mother's grieving for their loved one.

Today those babies are nearing their fifth birthday. Our country is still searching for justice.

God bless all the children born to the families that lost a loved one that day. I hope they are safe, healthy and loved.

It's just as sad today as it was five years ago.