Thoughts On Patriot's Day Analysis

Tea & Biscuit: A Non-American's Thoughts On Patriot's Day by Lee O'Donovan
As a non-native of America I am aware that my experiences of the 9/11 disaster is vicarious at best, I am humbled by my desire to share my thoughts on a national tragedy. If I seem to not give my words the gravity that the event deserves I offer my sincerest apologies.

I remember what I was doing when I heard about an aircraft flying into a sky-scraper in America. That Friday, September 9th, I was working as a cashier in a flagship city-centre bank in the North of England. A small, portable radio was on in the adjoining room where we would count large deposits of money. I heard the announcer say that an airplane had flown into the World Trade Centre and I remember thinking, "is this the end of the World?" and that I wanted to go home to be with my wife. This was the only time in my life when I have seriously thought that it was the end of the World.

The plane crash that Friday in September dominated the news on the television, I remember wondering why the destruction of the Twin Towers was so important. I never felt the sense of dread of the day that I have since

Many of the people that I spoke to about had some connection t the event, whether personally or via a close family member or friend. People have told me about being grounded for days at a time for days after, when flying was stopped to ensure American security, the tale of a sister who was in New York that Friday, how her family lost track of her when the city cell-phone towers were off and the relief when she was finally found safe and sound. One story sticks in my mind, a pregnant lady who was driving in her car across a New York bridge when the events happened. The lady tells me of how the roads suddenly, inexplicably, emptied and how she was worried that authorities might think that the lone driver on the road was a terrorist