We started out our day with a first for me! We rode the subway into New York City. I know, this might be strange.... but here I am, 60 years old and I have never ridden a subway. That is until today. It was interesting and very much like I expected. A very nice young gal helped us find exactly the right track for our train, helped us with our Metrocard so it was uneventful. We exited the subway at the World Trade Center. I had a mix of interesting emotions thinking about 9/11. Our first stop was the ferry to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. There is SOOOOOO much construction still happening around the World Trade Center. Even Battery Park was mostly closed because it is being renovated. (Just a side note...On Saturday in Washington DC we walked on the mall and took pictures of the Capitol and the Washington Monument. On Monday the entire mall was closed and ripped up - they were renovating it!) But I digress..... We got on the ferry to the Statue of Liberty with no problem (other than my camera malfunctioned, which we managed to fix after we got to Liberty Island). It was windy.... but wonderful. The weather was perfect. We couldn't have asked for a better day.
The Statue of Liberty was amazing. It was extremely crowded but the island is beautiful.
We were able to get some amazing pictures of the New York skyline, as well as Ellis Island and the Statue, of course.
This church was spared when the towers collapsed and then it became a haven for the recovery workers. Even now the doors are open and the pews are full of stories and pictures. It was another reminder of the very real presence of 9/11.
We decided to do the Observation Deck at One World Trade Center. It just opened on May 24 so some people really didn't know that it was even open! We were able to buy "timed tickets" on our phone so we had about an hour to wait. So we went to see the 9/11 memorial pools. Ken was walking around and taking pictures, and I was just sitting and watching the people around the memorial.
I noticed the names immediately. It is stark and beautiful and quiet (in spite of the city noise). And then I saw a young women approach the memorial, right in front of me. She almost threw herself on the wall and was obviously crying. A number of people nearby started to approach her, but in a moment there was a policeman right there, shooing the people away. He stood guard there, with his back to the lady. She left a rose at one of the names. Suddenly, this was a personal, very real place of grief and remembering. I was taken back in my memory to that day of tragedy. I am so thankful that these pools remain. Each of them are on the footprint of a tower that fell. When you look at the center, there is what appears to be an bottomless pit. It is a spiritual experience in the middle of a busy city.
The Observation Deck (Floors 101 - 103) of One World Trade Center is really amazing. The elevator ride is fast and you don't feel like you are even moving. There is a movie that plays on the walls of the elevator that shows New York City from the 1700's until today. Really cool. The most interesting thing is that you don't feel like you are up that high. It is sort of like looking out the window of a plane. There is no swaying and you are set back from the edges of the windows. But the 360 degree view is really neat. And you could see the Atlantic Ocean.
Grief is an interesting thing.... You can go from the heights (like the 103rd floor) to the depths (like that deep seemingly endless hole in the memorial) in just minutes. And when the grief is personal... this shift takes you by surprise. Even when you don't expect it. I saw the towers fall on television. I watched the horror of it all unfold in the following days. I remember feeling, sad and angry and terrified......and relieved that I didn't know anyone personally effected by the event. But today, it was so real to me. Looking at those names. Each one was someones mother, father, son, daughter, husband, wife, friend, family member. And I was sitting in the middle of New York City, missing Lucas Jacob Rowley. And it had nothing to do with 9/11 but everything to do with loss. I don't think I really "got" it before last November. Today, I had a better frame of reference for that young women. And I was so thankful for that policeman that respected her need for some privacy in that very public place.
Not what I expected at all from my day in New York City. But I think it was exactly what I needed. There is a strong connection between the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island and 9/11. It is the freedom and the welcome for immigrants that made it easier for this attack to happen. But I ended the day with a panoramic view that is billed as "See Forever". A place that is far above everything. All I could think about is seeing from Jesus' perspective. What a comfort it is to know that Jesus sees things in a way that IS seeing forever! He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He is the one that sees us and sees forever.
Jesus, thank you for this opportunity to experience so many new things and new places. It is such a comfort to know that you see each person who is in the midst of grief, and you get it. Thank you for the reminder that you are eternal and your eyesight is perfect. Help us all to look above our problems, our situations and even our griefs to see from your perspective. And Holy Spirit, give us a big shot of hope and joy when we need it! Amen
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