9/11 reflections

Today marks sixteen years since our nation was attacked and changed forever.  We say we never forget but what does that really mean? Does it mean we only think about those who were killed today and forget about them tomorrow?  How can we balance remembering them without letting our sorrows stand in the way of living our lives? Wives who no longer have husbands, husbands who no longer have wives, children left without parents. Parents left to grieve for their children; However there is one thing we can do, keep the memories alive. When you say "never forget" that does not mean dwell on  this day to the point that you don't allow happiness back into your lives. We all need times to grieve and times to celebrate, it's part of a process, not of healing but of living, which is what the people who died on that day want for all of us. One of the best ways to honor the memories of those who died on 9/11/01 is pause, remember and then move on. The best way to celebrate a person's life is to live you own life the best you can

There are a few memories I have of 9/11 that I will never forget, they happened they days after. One of them was my small contribution to the efforts. The days after 9/11 the radio traffic was incredible.  I knew there wasn't really a role for me. I wasn't going to hop in a car and fly down to the action, even though I really wanted to help. Also a lot of the ham radio traffic was quick and while I could copy it, relaying it to another station would have been a nightmare. That didn't mean I couldn't listen. I listened what seem non-stop for days. So a few days after   the disaster a ham who was driving all the way up from North Carolina was calling on a repeater and nobody was answering. After hearing him call for the forth time, I decided to bite the bullet and answer. He explained he was driving up to help with the recovery efforts and needed directions. After hearing his request I knew I needed to get another ham on the frequency. So I asked the ham to s-tand by and went to another repeater to summon help. I was rebuffed numerous times by the net control, I finally gave the ham the frequency to net was on When the ham switched over to the net, he asked for the net control and explained he drove all night t get to New York to help. He then had a stern warning for to the net control the he was talk to me and I was trying to get him some help. I sat back and had a chuckle to myself. It was my small contribution, but it felt very good.  The ham radio community lost Robert D. Cirri, KA2OTD, a Port Authority Lieutenant and a member of many radio clubs in the area 

A few months later I was invited to contribute an article to a magazine about what I heard that day and the days after the attacks. One of the main things I remember was in my 20+ years of listening, I n ever heard CAP or Civil Air Patrols. However as soon as the first plane hit, the military frequencies started to light up like a Christmas Tree!! It became a common occurrence. It was exciting and sad at the same. I knew the world would never be the same again!!

Then there's the reflection of living in Woodcliff Lake during that time. New York City is less than 20 miles away. Some people don't realize the New Jersey side of the George Washington Bridge is Bergen  County. We lost one of our residents, Jack D'ambrosia, in the attacks. I never met him, but they had a dedication for him at the Old Mill baseball field. I would ride past the field and think about him,

9/11 is a national day of mourning, but time does heal some of the wounds. We must never forget what happened while not dwell on it. My heart goes out to anyone who lost a love one in the attacks