9/11

By Sheila Robertson: I was at work, and we were listening to the radio; we had no access to television or even a window from our office. A news break announced that a plane had flown into one of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, and I believe someone cracked a joke to the effect of "How could you miss that building?" The work day continued, and then the second plane hit.

At that point, work ceased, and someone kicked up the volume on the radio and we tried to imagine what was going on in the world outside. There were reports of evacuations in Washington, D.C., reports of fires in the direction of the White House, reports of all manner of things. Speculation ran rampant.

All I could think was that this country was under attack, and I wanted to be with my children who were in school, miles away.

School was eventually dismissed early, as was work, and as a family we gathered together, glued to the television. I had online friends in NYC and DC and waited for word from them as well. (As the saying goes: It's a small world, but I wouldn't want to paint it.)

My daughter and I ran into town when The Gazette's special edition paper was released (which I still have), but then it was right back to the television coverage. This would appear to continue a tradition in my family. I remember watching coverage of the JFK assassination, then coverage of RFK's assassination, then coverage of the moonwalk.

I sincerely hope that this particular tradition is at an end.