In my last post, I mentioned how grateful I was that my boys are still too young to ask questions about September 11th. Boy was I wrong!
Dylan (while brushing his teeth before bed last night): “Mommy, we went to Ms. XXX’s class today. I saw my friends in that class.”
Me: “What did you do in Ms. XXX’s class?”
Dylan: “We saw a video about the twin towers and the fire. And do you know what? Brothers and sisters died. And kids. And babies died, too. Tons of babies. It was a long, long time ago. Before I was born. Before I was here. I didn’t exist yet. When the fire was gone, I was born.”
Rewind to 2:37 p.m. at carpool:
Me: “How was school? What did you learn today?”
Dylan: “Nothing. I played and had fun all day.”
Fast forward to the bathroom at bedtime:
Me: “Did you learn about September 11th today at school?”
Dylan: “Yes. It happened before I was born.”
Me: “It was eleven years ago.”
Dylan: “Were you there?”
Me: “Yes. Mommy and Daddy were both there.”
Dylan: “Did you see the fire?”
Me: “Yes.”
Dylan: “Were you in the fire?”
I was on the 2 train at the Wall Street stop when the first plane struck. When the doors opened, strangers dove into the train crying, screaming, and praying. I was so scared that I almost got off the train, but thank God I didn’t. I stayed put until 14th Street where I emerged from the subway with a crystal clear view of the North Tower on fire. Mike worked across the street from the World Trade Center. He was there. I didn’t find him until several terrifying hours later when he appeared at my office covered in dust. He doesn’t like to talk about it, but he escaped death that morning.
Me: “No, but very close.”
Riley (on the toilet): “It’s my turn to talk!”
Me: “Hang on, sweetie, Mommy and Dylan are still talking.”
Dylan: “Was I in your belly when that happened?”
Me: “No, you were something we looked forward to, but you weren’t in my belly yet.”
Dylan: “Oh. It was the twin towers and they had fire. So many people died.”
Me: “Yes, a lot of people died. It was sad. Thankfully, Mommy and Daddy didn’t. It was a very sad day.”
Dylan: “There was a lot of fire.”
Me: “Yes, do you know what Mommy and Daddy learned that day?”
Dylan: “What?”
Me: “To be grateful for every moment we have with the people we love. I love you.”
Riley (on the toilet): “Mommy, is it my turn to talk now?”
Me: “Yes, it’s your turn now.”
The Runaway Mama by Jen Gregory 
I didn’t realize you two were in NYC that day… So glad you were both okay. Also glad you could have such a great conversation with Dylan about all this. He sounds pretty mature for his age. 🙂
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i didn’t know you were there either… i was in SoHo watching the towers fall from my office… My best friend’s husband died… Jessie has asked why her friend Aaron doesn’t have a daddy.. all she knows is there was an accident and he died.. I’m not ready to tell her… I don’t think they talked about it at school.. she hasn’t come home saying anything about it.
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