I must share a short story.
Sitting in the airport anticipating my first visit to New York City I met a lady who was heading home to NY from business here in FL. We talked about 9 /11, her experiences and her feelings about how people should respect the memorial. She felt that it was awkward and disheartening to see visitors snapping smiling photos in front of where so many lost their lives. As much as I love taking photos the feeling was mutual.
This
incredibly brave woman was working on the 18th floor when the towers
were hit- she saw so much destruction; the chaos, the burning bodies,
people falling, others screaming. What seemed to be a nightmare was
sadly reality. Escaping with her life she ran towards home in Queens and
didn't stop running, that is until a tourist stopped her for
directions. All she could muster up was to tell them not to go in that
direction. How could they not know?
This woman, like so
many is a walking miracle. She said she's only gone by that area a
couple times but now cannot even go near there, and never will. I felt
honored she shared her story with me because she said she hadn't talked
about it much; explaining it was like a movie reel in her mind. I was
moved and saddened by this, but truly grateful for our encounter. She
seemed intrigued by my story of living aboard a sailboat along with the
simplicity of future dreams, as work had seemed to take over lately. I
offered up how journaling helped me through difficult times.
There
were other things discussed and we soon realized multiple similarities
in our life. I know we were meant to speak to one another that day.
People are important, life is precious and we must open our eyes to see
this truth. I wanted to tell her she was brave. Not only in that moment
of time; but since then she continues to be brave, courageous and
strong.
#neverforget but #respect and #honor
No comments:
Post a Comment