Five years

It's so hard to believe it's been five years since that fateful day in 2001. I feel so uneloquent trying to write any type of tribute or remembrance. There are so many others who were so directly affected, while I was sitting on my couch three-quarters of the country away. But this is definitely one of the "where were you?" dates in history.

I'd gone downstairs to eat breakfast, earlier than usual, and turned on the television as the second plane was hitting the second tower. I was driving to work as I heard that the Pentagon was hit. It was such craziness as teachers were trying to gather bits and pieces of information and keep some amount of sanity in the classroom. Definitely a day that couldn't end soon enough but one that lasted forever. I had to try to get to ABQ's Westside that afternoon--almost impossible since there were barracades around the FAA office that I didn't even know was in town until that day. I stopped by a friend's house to feed her cat, forgetting that she wouldn't be able to leave town on her early morning flight. I spent the rest of the week sitting on the couch, unable to turn off the terrible tragedy or sleep or do much of anything but worry.

Paul was at a conference in Baltimore. Phone lines across the country were tied up and I couldn't get in touch with him until late in the day. I spent the next five days desperately wanting him to be back home. I was so thankful that he would be coming home but feeling so guilty for those people who would never get to see their husbands or wives again.

My inlaws were on their sailboat in Chesapeake Bay and mostly unaware of what was happening in the world. All evening I had relatives calling our house to see if I'd been in touch with them. I didn't even know some of these people had our phone number but I wasn't in touch with my inlaws for a few more days to hear that they were fine.

Everyone eventually got home to me. Paul and his coworker drove across the country in their rented Cavalier, getting home on Sunday afternoon, just two days off-schedule. My inlaws continued their trip as planned, coming home in early November.

I still can't believe that this happened here. It seemed like such improbable tragedy and it was hard to know when it was fine to feel that things had returned to "normal." On our anniversary several weeks later, Paul and I spent a very quiet evening together, going up to the top of the tram and watching the sunset. It was so peaceful and calm--hard to believe that there was so much trouble happening in the world that unfortunately continues today.