25 Years Ago
The horrors of September 11, 2001, are impossible to erase. Nineteen terrorists committed heinous crimes, taking the lives of almost 3,000 innocent Americans. The events left an indelible mark on all who lived through them. Just hearing “9/11” brings back a flood of nightmarish, emotionally draining memories:
On my way to work that morning, stuck in downtown Washington traffic at a traffic light, I noticed a woman in the car next to me signalling. As I rolled down my window, she shouted, “Did you hear the news?!”
“No,” I replied, noting that my car radio was broken.
“A plane just crashed into the World Trade Center,” she yelled. “My father works in that building.” Then the light changed and she moved on. I never saw her again but will never forget the abject horror on her face.
Arriving at my office, everyone was watching television as the second plane hit. I was stunned and transfixed by the images: planes slicing through the walls of the World Trade Center, people jumping from buildings, and finally,........
