On the morning of September 11, 2001, I was preparing to leave the hospital in Rochester with my newborn daughter. She was born two days prior on September 9 and we were filled with excitement to have a new child joining our other two children at home. As I was packing my bag and getting ready to take my baby home, I had a morning news show on the television and they showed footage of a plane hitting one of the World Trade Center buildings and while they were showing that footage, another plane hit the second building. It was surreal and I remember being confused, wondering if what I was seeing was real or if it was footage from a movie as I had been busy packing and hadn’t heard all that they said. I was stunned and completely filled with disbelief.
My husband was enroute to pick us up when he heard the news on the radio. At the time, he was a program director of a radio station and not knowing what was truly going on in New York City, it was important for him to get back to the radio station to get news updates on the air as soon as they became available. As we drove home to Spring Grove, we intently listened to the news reports on the radio which had interrupted all usual programming. It was impossible to comprehend what was happening. The radio station was only a couple blocks from our home, so we dropped him off so that he could work. I continued home with our new little one. I remember thinking, “what kind of world have we brought this little one in to?” What kind of world will it be for my two other children, too?
Marlene Deschler
Spring Grove, Minn.