I think it’s safe to say that most of us can remember where we were on September 11, 2001. I was in Salt Lake City, UT. It was 6:30 in the morning and I was getting ready for school/work. My boyfriend called. I remember being surprised because we were on a “break” so I didn’t expect to hear from him.
“Turn on your TV,” he said.
“Why, what’s going on?”
“Just turn it on.”
I hung up the phone and then sat in horror while I watched the tragedy unfold as first the second and then the third plane crashed. Along with the rest of America, I spent the next few hours glued to my television set. My emotions changed from fear, to horror, and then sadness, and then back again. I spent the next several days and even weeks reading everything I could about the people whose lives were forever altered by those terrible events. I have never forgotten it, as I imagine, neither have you.
When September 11th came this year, I found it hard to believe that seven years had passed. I was very happy to hear, after all of these years, that a memorial site has been created to honor the victims. In fact, this past Thursday, Sept. 11th, the Pentagon Memorial was dedicated to those who lost their lives in the Pentagon crash.
So it was with reverance and respect that the CPA and I paid a visit to the new memorial on Sunday.
The day was grey and overcast, which seemed fitting.
A marker bears the names of the 184 victims who perished here, both in the Pentagon itself and those who were on the plane that crashed into the building.
The design of the site includes a large open courtyard area that has a gravel floor and is surrounded by a stone wall. The wall lists, in order, the birth years of the victims starting with the youngest and ending with the oldest.
The year on the wall marks the row where you will find all victims who were born in that year. In other words, the site is organized in rows by birth year of the victim.
Each bench represents a different victim. The bench has a small pool of water underneath that is lit at night by underwater lights.
The name of the victim is written at the end of the bench.
Many benches were adorned with photos, books, or flags. Others had flowers. It was truly heartbreaking.
There were some families who were together at the time of the crash. Each of the family members has his/her own bench. They are also recognized as a family by listing the head of the family on the bench and…
the names of the children and/or spouse underneath.
Just before we left, the sun broke free of the clouds.
What a beautiful tribute this memorial is. While it will never replace those whose lives were lost, it will hopefully serve as a constant reminder that they were here.
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