I remember that it was a beautiful, sunny day in Vancouver. My husband was washing his car, and I was packing for a road trip we were starting the next day. An ordinary day until everything changed.
News of the planes flying into the World Trade Center stunned us, and when we heard about a plane also crashing into the Pentagon, the events taking place on the East Coast suddenly became personal.
Anxiously awaited phone calls finally reassured us that our brother-in-law, in the Army at the time and frequently involved with work at the Pentagon, was not there when tragedy struck. But our relief was tempered by the horrible reality of thousands of people perishing in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania. Sitting in front of the television on Sept. 11, 2001, my emotions shifted from disbelief and sadness to anger at what had happened to our country.
Now, on the 10th anniversary of September 11th, a national 9/11 memorial, built at the site of the former World Trade Center, is ready to be dedicated.