Reflection..

Yesterday was a day full of so many emotions. The 10 year Anniversary commemorating the September 11th attacks brought back so many memories.

Where were you when the attacks happened?

I was in the tents for Fashion Week.

When did you first hear of the attacks?

Backstage I was on the phone with my mom's best friend, Charlene - her daughter was planning to come into the City for the day. She mentioned something about a plane hitting the world trade. Seconds later we were told they were evacuating the tents.

What were your thoughts/fears?

I had no idea what to think. Was this an accident or something more...?!

Who did you call first?

Cell phone service was practically nonexixtant. After much difficulty I finally got thru to my mother. She begged me to leave the City any way I could. I felt the need to stay.

Where did you go? Who did you spend the next 24, 48, 72 hrs with?

Everyone else was heading north away from Ground Zero as I started to walk downtown. Was there anything I could do to help?! I looked for a friend down by Union Square and decided it was best to head home. The second building had hit and both buildings were down. Something terrible was going on. I felt so fortunate to have amazing friends as roomates...me and my guy friends from Delaware got each other thru the next few days. I will never forget walking out to the street that night. We decided to try to get out of the apartment and away from the television...it was so depressing...there was no one else on the streets. New York City was a ghost town.

What did you notice after?

A City where people often walked around starring at the ground was now looking each other in the eye. There was an amazing sense of community. This tragedy should have never happened, but it did bring everyone together in an amazing way. We proved that we can not be defeated. We proved how strong we truly are.

Take a moment to think about what is really important in life. A friend wrote something that stuck out in my mind yesterday that I would like to share:

‎"10 yrs ago nothing mattered so much as where friends, family, co-workers were at those moments. On a plane?, in a building?, on a field trip? Somewhere! - We paused and did a "check" on who and where they were. Politics didn't matter, nor hurt against our fellow man/woman, who we had arguments with, or who we had petty grievances with. We were all brought together to comfort and hold each other up...Don't wait til events like this bring us together the way 9/11 did."

-Joshua Short