So I was my way into NYC for my meeting and I had some time to do something on my own, so I decided that I was going to plan on doing something for "my list". I wanted to go to ground zero. I tried to go last year when I was in NY, but since I had just had hip surgery it was tough to get around and since it essentially is one big construction site, I could see nothing. This year I came with a plan.
There is a small temporary tribute center/museum at the site http://www.tributewtc.org/ and I planned on going to that and wanted to catch a tour as well. So I raced into the city, dropped my stuff at the hotel and hopped on the subway.....which then got stuck. We stopped and then stopped again, and then we were one stop away from where I needed to be and they said we were going to be stuck for awhile. The website suggested that you be there 1 hour early for the tour and I was cutting it really close, so I grabbed my map and ran up the stairs and found my way on the streets down to the site............made it to the center 10 minutes before the tour was about to start and Praise God, there was room on the tour for me!
I would HIGHLY recommend the tour, which is led by volunteers who survived 9/11 or its aftermath. My guides for the afternoon were Kevin, a fireman who worked the days and 9 months following 9/11 (until his retirement) and lost something like 50 friends in 9/11, and Maria, a News reporter who was in the building across the street from the towers reporting when the second plane hit. They led us around the 16 or 18 (I cant remember which) acre area of the World Trade Center area telling us about the events that happened on 9/11, the days that followed and showing us the different memorials that have been created.
The first stop: The Fireman's Memorial which lists all the Firemen whose lives were lost. It is alongside the wall of the Firehouse which serves the TWC.
We walked along the perimeter of the site. You can't see much anymore due to the construction. I remember last year you could still see the big pit in the ground, it has been built up quite a bit more this year. The only clear view you really can get is from the Financial center bridge. While in the Financial Center, Maria shared her story and how the events of 9/11 played out for her and the days that followed . It was hard to listen to her and not feel your eyes begin to well up with tears.
We went to the World Financial Center's Winter Garden and saw where the old bridge once was and photos of how the Winter Garden had been destroyed during the attack, but it has since been repaired to what it is today with the palm trees all re-planted.
The final stop: The American Express memorial Entitled 11 Tears. At its center is a large tear-shaped piece of Brazilian quartz, which was carved to have 11 sides, one for each victim. Beneath the point of the upside-down tear is an 11 sided black granite pool; each side is inscribed with the name of an employee and a few words, selected by those who knew them best, to summarize the people they were. At random intervals, 11 drops of water fall from the ceiling into the pool, creating intersecting ripples, "symbolizing the connections among the close-knit group of colleagues and friends." The memorial is elegant and simple and so touching and personal.
I met a young couple from the Mid-west who I meandered back to the Visitor center with. We went through the center together. Talking about where we were that day when we heard the news......what we felt.....the panic I felt thinking and worrying about my friend Sheryl and her husband and not being able to reach them on the phone that morning, knowing that they worked in the city.....we looking at the photos together..... and the items that survived the event.......
After I finished with the center I was heading back to the hotel and I was walking past a church that borders the area of the WTC, St. Paul's Chapel http://www.saintpaulschapel.org/. This little church survived the attack and became a place of refuge for rescue workers for the 9month recovery process. They served the people of the area physically and spiritually at this neighborhood's darkest hour. They have a wonderful display filling their chapel reviewing the timeline of all that occurred during the 9 months after 9/11 and it was very inspiring!
The afternoon was emotional but not all sad. September 11th was a horrible and tragic day that has forever changed our history and has touched the lives of those of us who were alive on that day. However, if an ounce of good can come out of all that evil, it is that there are people who sacrificed their lives to try to save others, there are people who gave up there time to serve others, and at America's darkest hour we saw that there is goodness and love in the world. AND THAT IS STRONGER THAN EVIL......thus EVIL will NEVER win!!
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