On the morning of September 11, 2001 I was saying goodbye to my mother who was in the later stages of Alzheimers in a nursing home in Jonesboro Arkansas. My husband and I were girding for the long ride back to Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario where my 17 year old son was waiting at home for us. Then the planes hit the towers. Before I'd had time to recognize the enormity of what had just happened Harold said he had to step out. He returned a few moments later with gas and as much money as the bank machines would give him. We drove across the US in silence listening to NPR all the way. We did not take photos or record our experience but every part of that journey is branded on my memory.
Shortly after 9/11 Rob Walker and his girlfriend set out on a road trip from New Orleans to Virginia and she took photos of the symbols of patriotism that sprang up after the tragic event. The result is an accidental time capsule of a unique time in American history.
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Thank you for sharing your story, Marilyn.
ReplyDeleteIts a story that will never fade from my memory.
ReplyDeleteSpooky. I remember how clear and blue the skies were that week.
ReplyDeleteI'll never forget it. I'd made a hotel reservation a few days before at the Bardstown Tavern in Kentucky. We were the only guests and the only diners. I'd been looking forward to staying there and having a Maker's Mark Manhattan and a good dinner in their dining room. We ended up having a burger in the bar and watching CNN. Weird evening.
ReplyDeleteWhen we got to Buffalo, NY we heard that only one bridge was open and the lineups were 6 - 8 hours long. We debated getting another hotel room but wanted to get home to our son. Just then the radio announced that another bridge was opening and we sailed across the border in 5 minutes. I was never so happy to get back to Canada!