I was working for a local cable TV contractor on 9-11 and we had a project near Tyson's Corner. When the first tower was hit, we were on the HOV lanes on 95 and by the time it was clear America was under attack, my crew had arrived at the job and were just beginning to get to work.
I remember parking the truck near the work area so that we could listen to the news broadcast. As events transpired, we noticed there was no air traffic to be seen, despite being so close to Dulles, except for the occasional fighter jet patrol.
By noon, our customer was telling all of its contractors to go home for security concerns, so we packed up and joined the tens of thousands of others who were evacuating DC and Northern Virginia. Like many of you, I vividly remember getting home and somberly absorbing the endless footage on the evening news. I can't deny there were some tears shed.
Well, here we are, nearly 15 years later and I learned something today about 9-11 that felt like a brand new punch in the gut. Have you ever seen the show Pawn Stars? A quirky family owns a pawn shop in Vegas and gets all kinds of interesting people coming in with unusual items. They try to highlight items with historical significance.
Today, I saw an episode that featured a letter signed by Helen Keller. Not only was it authenticated, it was simply amazing to hear things about her I never knew. However, the expert also shared a heart wrenching detail. For almost a century, Helen Keller's Archive had been housed a block away from Ground Zero and was completely destroyed in the collapse of the World Trade Center.
Even in death, she's been muted.
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