I'm a Jersey Girl who has lived in South Florida for twenty years. Despite my Florida address, I'll always be a Jersey Girl. And I'll always love New York.
I consider myself lucky to have grown up in a town that was a quick bus ride to Midtown Manhattan. All I had to do was take the 163, and venture through the Lincoln Tunnel, to enjoy all the benefits of the city that never sleeps.
I chuckle when I hear Florida kids taking fieldtrips to Disney. For us, there were endless trips to museums, the opera, ballet, and broadway plays. We walked up town, down town, through China Town. We rode the ferry straight to the Statue of Liberty, or rocketed up the elevator of the Empire State Building. In winter, the streets sucked us into whipping wind tunnels...and we felt alive!
New York! Breathe it in...feel the energy...see the sights!
Each time I go up north, I still take the 163 from Jersey to the City. I wait anxiously for the curve that takes you to the Lincoln Tunnel. As I round the bend, I see the skyline looming ahead across the river...strong...erect. At night, it's dazzling. But I force my eyes to look downtown, and I sense the gash...how odd. I visualize the past...the twin anchors...two towers of strength...and very deep inside, I feel the wound.
I don't understand violence...any violence...slavery...holocaust...kids killing kids. And that day. I watched that day on TV in the Media Center of my school in Florida. I watched in disbelief, and horror. My city...my skyline...the people...my niece. I was worried about my niece, trying to get back to Jersey. I watched, and I knew somehow the world had changed.
Years later, I don't search for any answers. I just know that we must strive for peace...for a better, kinder world. We must denounce acts of evil, cowardice and prejudice. And we must remember.
My heart goes out to those who lost loved ones in the senseless 9/11 Tragedy.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
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