Every Year

Every year I cry during the reading of the names of the people murdered on 9/11. The people that lost their lives that day were doing nothing different from what we all do everyday. They were at work, flying on a plane, or serving the community. They didn't know that they kissed their families goodbye for the last time. They were no different then any of us are.

I would have been in front of the WTC at the moment the first plane hit if it wasn't for a doctor's appointment in Brooklyn that I had that morning. I would have been with Candace on the express bus from Bay Ridge. I didn't have to witness the panic, see the people falling from the towers, or run through the streets of lower Manhattan. I am thankful for that and I am thankful that Candace made it out of the area ok. 

I know many families that lost loved ones on 9/11. Today I think about your lost and I cry. I cry for a past that cannot be changed and a future without the people you love.

Always remember that any of us could have taken the path that would have lead us to being in those buildings or on those planes. Always remember the lost that NYC and America suffered that day. Never forget the strength, compassion, and heart that got us through the days after. And never use the memory of 9/11 as an excuse to hate.

Firefighter Daniel O'Callaghan - always in the heart of  your family