Sunday, September 11, 2011

10 Years Later


Greetings Readers

I remember watching the news in the morning, no different from any other morning, when the news changed from the "normal" news to "live" news and a shot of the World Trade Towers from a helicopter. There was black smoke pouring from one of the World Trade Towers.

I went into my brother's room, turned on the TV and then woke him up to tell him what was happening in New York.

Then I saw on TV the second jet coming into view of the camera and then disappear behind the building. A second or two later I saw the Tower explode out and the explosion of what had to be that jet crashing into the Tower.

I could not believe it.

I went to work eventually, and the few people I saw while biking to work I told them The World Trade Towers are gone.

Where I was working at the time they gave us the option to go home if we could feel that we could work in light of this tragic accident. I stayed the day, yet we were all quiet, most of the women were crying, had been crying, whatnot.

That evening was the moment it affected me on what just happened that morning.

Year after year. This day in history comes and goes. Along with that the moments of silences, the "we will never forget", tributes, tv shows, etc.

10 years later.

I get up early and was basically was going to avoid the live coverage of memorial coverage of the people that have names we know who died. This does not include the people who died, but we do not know who.

I turned the tv on and starting watching Mad Men on AMC since they are showing the show every Sunday Morning.

Well... I got curious. I scanned the guide and saw a show that was airing on several channels. Hmmm. I read the title - 102 Minutes That Changed America.

I changed to one of the channels, History, and what do you know I watched til the end. commercial free. This was a show not like any of those 9/11 documentaries, or some one's story that I have only glimpsed at since I do not watch those shows about 9/11.

No commentator, just raw footage, very low tones of music and lots of lots of video footage as well as radio, cell, phone,9-11 call footage from different parts of New York.

The moment in the show that stuck me was a camera was focused on couple of fire fighters looking up at the Towers and then you see all their eyes following in the same direction. You instantly know that they are following an object falling. Though you never know what the object is/was. As the object comes closer to Earth you see all their heads level out and then look away. I just remembered what I had forgotten. The people who fell/jumped from the World Trade Towers that day 10 years ago.

All those feelings I forgotten 10 years ago just came back.

I do not talk about this day nor do I want to discuss this day in history. I avoid watching the documentaries that show every time this part of the year.

Up until today, I have not blogged about this day in history.

This picture is the most haunting of that day for me. I first saw this picture in GQ and actually this was just luck when the picture was taken. Matter of fact, there is a sequence of pictures taken one after another of this person falling. As you can see Readers - this person is falling head first to Mother Earth. In reality the person is tumbling, but at this moment captured in time forever it shows a haunting falling person head first like Superman flying.

Video footage is tough to watch of that day. I have some VCR tapes of that day, but 10 years later I have not watched a single tape of that day. I think the most haunting footage for me is the footage of the first plane being heard over New York and below looking up to sky. Then you see the camera turn to the left and you see that plane fly into the World Trade Center. Oh my. My breath stops. It is amazing to me that the first plane hit was captured on video.

10 years later.

I just saw and heard for the first time that Condoleezza Rice spoke with the Russian President Vladimir Putin - I never knew of this until this morning on that morning.

You know Readers I do not think that I have ever shared this with anyone I know or don't know. Why know? Why not before? Why at all?

10 years later

Until the next time

Daryl Charley
The Fallen Athlete

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