Running eased the pain of the loss
When you’ve been running as long as I have, there are many moments you can trace back to running. Among those moments is my memory of a run on September 12, 2001.
We lived on the other side of town at the time, a bit closer to the airport. Many of my daily runs back then were peppered with the sound of incoming and outgoing planes. Not overly loud–they were still fairly high up–but enough that I was aware of the din on most runs.
The day after September 11, most of us were tied up in knots, unsure of what to do with ourselves. One thing I knew I needed to do was go for a run. Now, I live fairly close to DC, so even going out like that the next day seemed a bit of an uncertain idea, but I knew I had to go.
And what I remember from that run is the eerie silence. There were no planes in the air. There were very few people out and about. It was a bit disconcerting, I’ve got to say. But the quiet also gave me the chance to think, to process, to pray.
When I got back from that run, I was still a mess, of course, like everyone else in the nation. But I DID feel better. Like many other times in life, running was there to make the tough going just a little bit easier.
I remember sitting in Dr. Watson’s US History class and being suddenly dismissed. Oddly enough, I was not a runner at the time and in the worst shape of my life at the time. I do remember realizing for the first time at age 18 how vulnerable we really are and appreciated life and my health more.
9/11 serves as a good reminder to appreciate life, family, friends, and everything we have as Americans and human beings.
I wrote about it today as well. How I wish I was running back then…
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i was a senior in high school… i wasn’t as dedicated of a runner back then.
i also was “still a kid” – i didn’t fully realize the implications of what was happening. i think if something like this happened now i’d be a lot more fearful. the innocence of a child is much more freeing.
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Just posted about this…
It’s so quiet and peaceful outside right now as I type! I can hear crickets and smell the early fall air coming in through the window. Isn’t peace a glorious thing?
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I was a senior in college, training for my new job at the coffee shop. All I think as I watched the plane hit the second tower was, “Where is my sister?” She was in her first year at NYU at the time, and like so many others, I couldn’t get through to her because of the jammed cell phone lines. Thank God, she was safe and got out of NYC that day. This morning, as I ran the 10th annual Baltimore Run to Remember 5K, I choked up remembering my feelings of helplessness, anger, and fear. I ran this morning for all those who are no longer here to run, and to feel connected with the larger community in remembrance.
I wish I was a runner then.
My friend and I were in Mesa Verde on 9/11. Early on 9/12 we drove madly fast home to San Jose to be with our close ones.
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I remember the silence too. So surreal.
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I was not a runner then. I was teaching and someone came to my room to tell me what was going on. At that time the students still didn’t know so it was a little surreal to know major things were happening but not able to watch the news at the time. It was a tough one to process with the kids for sure.
I also remember the silence in the sky even in my little state.
Shock, I remember feeling so shocked. This had happened to us here on our shores, this violence and hatred. SO shocking.
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I get shivers reading each and every recount of 9/11 and the days shortly after it. Such a tremendous event to process…It’s interesting to see what fine details everyone as tucked into their memories.
Runblondie26 recently posted..9-11
I don’t live near NY and never have, don’t even know anyone who lives there….but I remember running the day after too and finding a little a little sense of calm, too.
Running is such a gift. Such an outlet for us to grieve, dance, express joy, pray, calm ourselves….So glad you had running then. And now.
As a New Yorker I held up very well yesterday until the football game and they showed the city that I will always love and call home. I lost it, but like a true New Yorker I picked myself up and laughed and cheered loudly for the Jets (whom I dislike just as much as the Cowboys as I’m a Giants fan) as they came back to win that game.
Then I thought it was behind me and today I go to google reader and there are posts about 9/11. I got through the first few but this one got to me. It is hard to think about NYC without the buildings. It is hard to think about NYC the way it was. Has it changed a lot: NO. But it has changed.
I can remember going to and from work out of Grand Central Station and seeing soldier carrying M-16s. Dogs and Cops everywhere. We went about our way as usual but the sights were different.
I pray for the day that 9/11 is a peaceful day for me. I lost friends that day and I will never forget it.
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Love this: Like many other times in life, running was there to make the tough going just a little bit easier.
So true.
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i’ll never forget how quiet it was…so surreal. being so close to NY and knowing people who went up to help clean and even people who were trapped in their buildings, it was just such an awful time.
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it’s good to remember.
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I had the same experience. Went out for a run to try to clear my head and feel “normal” in a world turned inside out and felt the loud silence. No airplanes overhead and even traffic seemed absent. It really felt like time stood still.
But yes, running helped like nothing else.
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I so wish that I’d been a runner on 9/11/01 because I think it would have helped. I was still a few years away from learning that running was something that I loved.
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