I wrote this a couple of years ago - it seems like a good idea to publish it again...
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First of all, today is my sister's birthday. Happy Birthday Sis...
However, for one, obvious, reason, this was overshadowed 8 years ago, on "the day the world changed".
From that day on, thousands of lives around the world would never be the same again.
I write this as someone who had no personal or emotional involvement whatsover.
I didn't lose anyone.
I wasn't worrying about anyone.
Nevertheless, as a human, it's not possible to ignore the torment and suffering of those that were.
I can't pretend to understand their feelings. I never will. However, as I have been sitting and watching the numerous television programmes about the events in New York, I silently wonder what it must have been like.
How being trapped in the buildings must have felt;
What were the feelings of those on the ground, watching, helpless;
The police and fire departments all called into action;
No-one being in control of the situation;
Friends and family, watching the drama (because that is what it was) unfolding before them as television pictures were beamed around the world.
I remember exactly where I was when 'it' happened. I can visualise my desk, my laptop, the work I was doing.
I also remember the mutterings that started around lunchtime; quiet talk, which, as the minutes drew on, became louder; colleagues first of all complaining that they had lost internet access.
"The BBC News site has gone down" was a common call.
Of course, the site hadn't gone down, it just couldn't cope with the demand.
I remember also trying the Sky News site, with limited success.
It was limited because, when I navigated to "the story", I lost it - but prior to that, there were images of The World Trade Center buildings, along with the headline.
Not much work was done that afternoon. We were thousands of miles away, across the Atlantic, but nevertheless, we were caught in the drama.
That was the extent of my 'involvement'.
As the years go by, the memories slowly fade, however, whenever we fly, they are renewed as we go through security and controls at the airport. They are there because of the atrocities of 9/11.
My thoughts and best wishes go to anyone and everyone who has lost a loved one; may you find strength in their memory.
