I didn’t have my beautiful grandbaby at the time, so I decided I’d sleep later than usual. The television was on low, and I probably would have slept longer if my phone hadn’t rung. As I turned over and looked at the caller ID, I recognized it as one of my son’s friends, so I didn’t bother to answer it. I was a little peeved that they were calling my house so early for him. “He won’t be here until the afternoon anyway,” I said out loud as I pounded my pillows, preparing to go back to sleep. I remember wondering why they didn’t call his cell phone.
As I lay there, I found my focus lingering on the television set. I had to blink several times to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. On the screen was a live shot of the Twin Towers, enveloped with this awful black smoke, fire streaming from the windows. Then as I threw my legs over the side of the bed and grabbed the remote control, I saw a person jumping from one of the windows, followed by another one. I was transfixed…I couldn’t believe this was actually happening. Could this be really happening? I started switching channels, and it was on every one of them. I grabbed the phone and called my sister to see if she was aware of what was going on. At the same time, I started looking for my address book to call my half sister who works in New York.
I’d never been so frightened before in my life.
I kept thinking, this has got to be the beginning of the end.
While I called my various family members, I kept asking myself if the battle of Armageddon was supposed to come before the rapture or after the rapture. I couldn’t think straight, let alone remember the Bible prophecy.
I did know that from this point on, nothing would ever be the same in our lives again.
The next couple of days are pretty much a blur. Sure, I went through my daily routines. I finally touched base with my half sister and found out that she hadn’t gone into New York that morning and was safe. But I found myself so depressed, like something inside me had been lost…destroyed with the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
I was tuned in to the news all day and all night, and even got upset with my husband when he tried to watch a video on Thursday night. He said he just needed a break from the pain. I didn’t think it was time for a break yet. I kept thinking of all the families of the confirmed dead and the missing. They didn’t get a break, so why should we.
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