Like many other people, September 11th 2001 was just like any other Tuesday. Walking down along the production floor, I noticed a group of people listening to a radio.

"Somebody crashed a plane into the World Trade Center!", I heard as I walked by one of the assembly areas.

Questions. What kind of plane? How big was it? How could an accident like this have happened with all the advanced navigation technology available today? Moments later came a report of another plane. Soon, a sick feeling overcame me that this was no accident.

Then the reports of the Pentagon, then another in Pennsylvania. A television was wheeled into a conference room. I tried to tell myself it was a nightmare as I watched the North Tower crumble to the ground. People were in shock. Were any of our company personnel on those planes? Thank God, no. The day wore on. The shopping center next to our plant was being evacuated; security reasons.

Nobody was really in the mood to work. Our industry, aviation security, suddenly and unexpectedly took on an almost urgent air. Not today. Too many broken hearts. Too many questions. We would need to regroup and try to come to terms with the events of the day.

After I got home, I took Charlie, our shepard-lab dog, for her usual walk around the neighborhood. On any given evening, I can look up and see half a dozen jets lining up to land at Logan International Airport about 25 miles to the south. Up until that point, everything had been somewhat removed from me; just pictures on a television, words from other people. All of a sudden, we stopped walking. No jet engines in my ears. No pinpoint flashes of red light from the aircraft beacons reaching my eyes. Suddenly, "September 11th" became as real as the pavement I was walking on. It was an incredibly eerie moment; one that I will never forget.

Several weeks after the attacks, I happened to come across an article about a clothing store a couple of blocks from the World Trade Center. Chelsea Jeans, on Broadway near John Street, was heavily damaged from the fallout of the attack. The windows were blown out and dust from the towers was everywhere. In the days that followed, people were lining up outside this store; not to buy clothes, but just to take home a small cup of dust. These people realized that this dust was special. It was made from the souls of thousands of innocent people who, after leaving a small kiss goodbye, headed out the door never to return.

The words of Job cried to me:

"If he should take back his spirit to himself, and gather to himself his breath, all flesh would perish together, and man would return to dust. If you have understanding, hear this; listen to what I say."

Store owner David Cowhen did not want the magintude of the event to ever be lost in history so he invested $10,000 and installed a protective glass barrier; creating a special place where people would reflect. The story of David Cohen and his little store inspired me to write my tribute song, "Return to Dust". I have dedicated it to the thousands of men, women, and children who's lives were forever changed on September 11, 2001.

Shelves of jeans covered with dust. Photo by Jim Occi, Cranford, NJ.

So what happens now? In as much as I am against the environmental policies of the current administration in Washington, DC, I believe that these are the right people to have at this point in history. My prayers are with the leaders for their judgement and with the armed forces in their battle against terrorism. I hope this country will aid the suffering in Afghanastan as best as possible and, when the time is right, leave and let the people of the region determine their own future.

NEVER FORGET 9-11-01

9.11 Links ~

			Attack on America through the eyes of a child.
			New York Times: A Nation Challenged.
			September 11th Ribbons.
			The Iron Cross; my own picture from Ground Zero.
			The September 11th Digital Archive.
			TelevisionArchive: A library of world prospectives concerning September 11, 2001. Television programming (commercials and all) from around the world.

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