15 Years...

By Thornton Crowe

I remembered coming into WTC station in the mornings and coming out of the towers. Looking up, you could almost swear those towers were swaying in the wind. It made you dizzy to look up to the top but fascinating to see the majestic twins from 110 floors below.

The Sphere before 9/11/2001

The huge brass sphere would bounce the morning and afternoon sunlight and reflect off the pool that surround it like some weird aura of light.

When I first moved to New York City, I was in awe of everything about the city. In fact, I remembered getting my directions mixed up coming out of subways but knew if I always looked for the World Trade Centers, I could acclimate myself, knowing they were always South. I took it all for granted. I never thought in a million years anything could destroy those two rather dull looking grey towers or any of the surrounding buildings.

When the second plane hit 9:04AM EST

And here we are... It's hard to believe it was fifteen years ago this morning - a hot sunny Tuesday morning - people still commuting. As some of you read this, in real time that day, the towers were about to make their descent, becoming an instant grave for 2,606 people.

Though I was a couple hundred miles away, I can't help remembering the phone ringing early in the morning. My dad told me to turn on the news and stay calm.  By this point, the first plane had already hit the World Trade Centers.

Watching in horror, I remembered 1993 when I was living in the New York City area. A bomb had blown up in the garage of the World Trade Centers. So to see the second plane hit and then minutes later both towers collapsing to the ground left me stunned for more than just a day. The panic to get in touch with friends that still lived and worked on Wall Street began as cellphones and landlines didn't even ring on the New York City end. It was dialing out into the void, hoping a call would connect with someone on the other end.