Today is the ten-year anniversary of a day that completely shook our nation. I think partly because it’s exactly 10 years later and partly because NYC and Washington have received recent threats, some of us are on overload. Since about the middle of last week we have seen image after image of the towers being attacked, and knocked down, images of the streets during and immediately after the attacks and the stories of the survivors and those whose family and friends were lost in the attacks. NYC is on a high alert which means that cars are being stopped at check points throughout the city, “suspicious” looking people are being questioned and likely detained.
When I think of 9/11 on any given day of the year at any given time, I remember being in school and my friends and I being in shock and deciding to go against what was suggested and walking home from Hunter on East 79th St. It was too much of a risk for us to even think of staying there. We had just realized the city was being attacked, and could visually see some of the results of it. Once we were downstairs we joined the masses of people walking North and walked until we got to our respective destinations in the Bronx and Northern Manhattan. Some of the walkers were covered in debris and dust, the streets were clear of most traffic besides the walkers. Once I arrived in the Bronx my first stop was my moms, although it wasnt marked with tears and sobs, it was still ripe with emotion and it was a necessary stop. Afterwards I headed home to my children and spouse and had never been so happy to get home. My infant son clearly didn’t know what had happened and I found solace in this. My then 5-year-old son had a normal day at school with some minor concern but he was fine. I had to stop myself from walking from my mother’s home to my own home, initially not realizing that transportation was still working in the Bronx despite having seen busses passing by it just didn’t sink in.
So many of us were so impacted by these and similar events. And while I think it’s incredibly important and valuable to mark this occasion, honor the innocent lives lost and the many families impacted, I worry that we can be re-traumatized when we are over exposed to so many of these repeated images and stories in such a short amount of time. Although many speak of the survivors of 9/11 as only those that escaped the towers, I think the entire city really survived.
If you feel seriously impacted my first suggestion would be to get professional help. You can also do things that you find soothing. Keep a journal about your thoughts and feelings. Speak to family or friends about it, especially those that are similarly effected.
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