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September 4, 2010

September 11, 2001

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Inspired by 2010 Memory Logbook Weekly Challenge #36 at Log Your Memory

We're All Waiting For Something by Lauren Grier and Shawna Clingerman
Font: Times New Roman

For anyone crazy enough to want to read all that journaling, here it is:
On the morning of September 11, 2001, I got up and got on the bus to head to work in downtown Salt Lake City. Just like every other Tuesday. Right as we got to the stop in front of my office building, a guy on the bus who had been listing to the radio on his headphones said, “Some dumb-butt just flew an airplane into the World Trade Center.” And, someone else said that they had heard that an airplane flew into the Pentagon as well. By then, I was off the bus and walking to my office. I realized that those two events couldn’t just be non-related accidents and that something was going on. As soon as I got to my desk at work, I checked the Internet and saw that there was something serious happening. I quickly called Brett and my mom and told them to turn on the TV. Then I headed for the Training Room where we had a TV. A bunch of my friends/co-workers were already gathered in the Training Room, and we all sat together and watched. By the time I got up there, the 2nd plane had already hit the World Trade Center. We watched in amazement as the Towers fell. I’ll never forget that I put my hands over my open mouth as I watched them fall, realizing that thousands of people had just lost their lives. We continued watching the coverage for quite a while, then eventually, we all returned to our desks. But, I just couldn’t work, and I went home early. I think most people did.
The Tabernacle Choir was scheduled to give a concert that evening, and the more I thought about it, I just couldn’t see how we could go forward with it. But, when I called the Choir office, they told me that the concert was on. I’m sure they had been getting phone calls all day long. On the way to the concert, I heard an announcement on the radio that the Mormon Tabernacle Choir concert scheduled for that evening would be a Memorial concert. As we all arrived at the Tabernacle, we learned that the entire concert had been changed. Instead of our scheduled list of songs, we were singing Hymns of Consolation, Hymns of Praise, Songs of Our Nation, and Hymns of Faith. President Hinckley, President Monson, and President Faust were all there. I remember letting the tears roll down my face as we sang “Be Still My Soul,” “Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing,” and “God Be With You Till We Meet Again.”
The next few days were so strange. You couldn’t go anywhere without seeing those horrible images of the planes hitting the towers and of the towers falling. I remember feeling a deep, deep sadness and sitting in my living room and just weeping for all the heartache that so many people were feeling. I put a tape in the VCR and recorded a full 8 hours of news coverage. As hard as it was to watch, I never wanted to forget what those days were like.
On Friday, September 14, 2001, President Bush declared a National Day of Prayer and Rememberance. Once again, the Choir was asked to sing for a memorial service. And, again, the First Presidency was there to participate. It was a beautiful program that included the tolling of the Nauvoo Bell, a moment of silence, songs of solace and comfort, and scripture readings from the Bible. In the midst of so much sadness and despair, I was so grateful that I was able to help spread a message of comfort and peace. It was a blessing that I have always treasured.
In the years that have passed since 2001, the world has been in turmoil. I don’t know if we’ll ever fully recover from what happened on that day. It left a pretty deep wound. But, I’m grateful for my memories of that day and the few days that followed. I never want to forget what happened. And, I always want to be singing the praises of a loving Heavenly Father who has the power to bring healing and peace to each one of us.


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