I can't believe it's been 7 years since the horrible day when Mike and I sat in The Royal Treat in Rehoboth, Delaware and thought that everyone must be getting the news all wrong. Something with a plane, and a building? We were out for breakfast during our vacation with our, then not-quite-2-year-old, Sprout.
Finally, we figured out what had happened (and I still, to this day, can't completely get my head around it) and found a TV and watched in horror. Sprout kept pointing at the TV and saying "Fire!", which was our clue to turn off the TV and go do something else. I don't think she could have possibly comprehended what was going on, but we knew it was our job to make her feel safe, and watching the TV wasn't going to help.
I remember Mike standing in the street trying to get cell phone reception to check on friends who worked at the WTC (they were all OK - thank goodness!) And feeling like everyone was coming together (good) while everything was falling apart (so so bad).
We were especially freaked out when the outlets in Rehoboth were closed because they feared that anywhere with large gatherings of people could be a target. Since when does shopping for off-price clothing cause you to be a terrorist target? Well, since 9/11/01, I guess.
We stuck out our vacation, flying kites and playing in the sand and focusing on what we had - each other. Trying not to focus on what was, or could be, lost.
I remember spending the next couple of weeks waiting for the other shoe to drop. Anarchy. Looting. The end of life as we knew it.
Instead we saw a sea of American Flags. Everywhere we looked - more and more flags. And eventually we settled into the new state of things. Not completely safe, although I guess that was true before, we just didn't realize. But the world didn't end. And things got better.
And just about 9 months later...there was a Tater...how's that for faith?
