My surreal New York moments...

As a storyteller, this is probably one of the most emotive and most surreal article I have ever had to write (aside from one in memory of my father). Much as I wish it never happened in my lifetime...or close to me or my home. I could wish a lot of things..Sadly after just having been there (at the WTC on the 4th of July 2001) attending a live Jazz concert that kept us all occupied while we waited to secure the best spot for the fireworks parade on the Hudson, I don't get to forget one of my most profound New York moments!

The events of 911 are still raw and as fresh on my mind especially because of the fact that I was only + 1 hour away from ground zero, at home in Garden City, Long Island that fateful September day. Within minutes, the SWAT team came knocking on our apartment doors, helicopters hoovered in our neighbourhood as the sombre folks around me gathered to the nearest television screen to watch the smoke filled clouds rise from the twin towers...

Most people know how the story continues - as it has been told a million times from a million perspectives, however, it never stops being a personal narrative for most of us that were in such close proximity. For me, that was the beginning of the end to a life I had come to know and love...it was also just a day before what would have been my 3rd wedding anniversary... Fast forward two weeks later, as I drove my loaded Toyota out of Long Island heading to Columbus Ohio, the hardest part was taking the exit 3 for Interstate 278 W/Verrazano Bridge towards Staten Island, where the dust still lingered in the air and the stop and search team were still doing their jobs... This eerie memory of ground zero is still engraved in my memory to this day. Albeit for the corporate loss I personally felt for the city I once called my home.. or for personal reasons...was it perhaps the significance of my own personal milestone though so obscure in comparison? All I can remember as we were cleared to drive on, is saying a prayer, 'Lord they need you more than I do right now'...as the solemn visions of the 911 events replayed over and over in my mind's eye as if it had just been the other day. Memorial days like today, just bring it all back to the fore...I can still feel and see the same visions...what a sobering and humbling scar I will live with forever!

There is always a chance to rebuild from the ashes; rise like a phoenix and start over, besides the loss and pain...

Even though I still do not understand how to navigate the complexities of the human condition, nor have I found the meaning of all that happened that day, even though my insights are still as fuzzy as they were all those years ago, even though my personal life has changed a lot since; I can only say, "There is always a chance to rebuild from the ashes; rise like a phoenix and start over, besides the loss and pain..." because I believe in the human ability to rise above all challenges, overcome and come out stronger the other side, because I did.

My heart goes out to you today if you have ever lost a loved one or a job. Grief is a process that may take different forms, and manifests in different ways in many people. Whatever that means to you, I would highly recommend a grief counsellor - a person you can confide in. From whom you can expect no judgement. There is so much help out there, and you do not have to be alone.

Final thoughts go out to my friends and family in the USA, as you remember today, may you find strength and comfort in knowing that God has got you and that your loved ones are watching over you too from up above.

Whomever you are, wherever you are, whatever you do today, may love and peace that surpasses all understanding always be with you. All my love and warmest wishes xoxo - JN