There are rare moments in time where the world seems to stand still. Moments of global significance that leave us knowing with certainty, that we will never forget.
I will never forget waking up to the news of the 9/11 attacks on that early Tuesday morning in 2001. I was getting ready to start my day, preparing to head to class at USC when I flipped on the television and saw what would ultimately be forever etched in my mind.
The images of those planes cutting into the Twin Towers was shocking, devastating and quite frankly scary. I will never forget seeing the two skyscrapers topple over. It was unbelievable, unfathomable, and simply unreal. My heart sank as I watched the screen fill with black smoke and debris, and I can still remember the dampness on my face from crying at the thought of all those who perished in the rubble and devastation. Really, there were no words I could say as I sat staring at my television screen. It didn't seem real, but when I heard the fear in Peter Jennings voice, it reassured me that it was indeed very real. Sadly.
And for a brief moment, I found myself sitting silently ... hoping, praying, and wishing for better days ahead.
With my family at my side, we spent the next three days glued to the news coverage, listening to story after story of loved ones praying for miracles that their parent, sibling, spouse, child, relative, or friend would somehow be found alive. I read and listened to each tragic story, each desperate plea , and endless stories of the courageous men and women, selfless police officers and firefighters who died in the senseless attacks and the heroes who stood united following the devastation . . . it was unbearably difficult to watch such pain and sadness. But for some reason, I could not look away.
I will never forget what it felt like that day.
When I first heard of Osama bin Laden's death yesterday, I was amid the joy and revelry at the . I was chatting with my cousin when we received a text of the news. And that feeling of disbelief once again revisited my being because I knew that this too, would be another moment in my life that I would not soon forget.
My mind immediately wandered to all those who had lost a loved one in the 9/11 attacks and to those who have lost brave soliders in the wars and battles that followed. And after a short prayer for those who passed before us, I wondered if the news brought the victims' families even the slightest bit of comfort in world that still faces the threat of terrorism daily. Though I imagine their wounds are just as painful as they were on that ill-fated morning almost 10 years ago, but perhaps bin Laden's death provides a slight sense of closure. Hopefully.
And much like Sept. 11, 2001, I somehow found myself once again sitting silently . . . still hoping, praying and wishing for better days ahead.
