When I signed up to join the 9/11 Tribute, I wasn't sure what I would write. Even now, after weeks of working on it- I'm not sure how to begin telling this story.
On September 11, 2001 I started the morning just as I had every other day before. My husband went off to work, I made the kids breakfast and put on cartoons as we sat down to eat. We had a day full of activities planned for us, and I was in a hurry to get an early start. Sometime between Blues Clues and a stream of commercials, my telephone rang.
I listened for a moment, and then made my way into the bedroom, flipping on the television and changing the channel to the news. Despite having the phone up to my ear, I was no longer listening to the voice on the other end. My mind was occupied with the images flashing on the screen, and it wasn't until I saw a plane disappear behind a building, heard the horrified response of the person on the line, and realised that the plane was gone, that it became clear that something life changing was happening.
I've often heard that it was the day the world will never forget, and now five years later, that seems to be ringing true. Today however, is not about terrorists. It is not about The World Trade Center. Or the Pentagon, or the crash of flight 93 that took the lives of heroes- and prevented the deaths of countless people. It is not about planes.
"Te amare por siempre y nunca olvidare quien Sandra Rivera era en los ojos mio."- "I will love you forever and I will never forget who Sandra Rivera was to me.", message left by a loved one, translated to English
Today is about remembering 2996 people. People that had families, that had lives, that had dreams. People who woke up September 11th , 2001 and were going about their lives. Today, while we remember the sadness and pain of that day- we also celebrate the lives of those who were lost, and mourn for our loss.
Digna Costanza, often referred to as Sandra was just 25 years old. She was the daughter of Uriel & Albertina Rivera, and had two sisters: Ingrid and Uriel D. Rivera. Digna is also remembered by Anacelia Rivera, who was a cousin, an Aunt and Uncle- Gladys and Gusin and many others. She was married to John Costanza.Digna had attended John Jay College, and worked at Marsh & McLennan as a claims specialist on the 100th floor of WTC Tower One. She was among the 295 Marsh employees who lost their lives that day.
While the the rest of us never had the honor of knowing Digna, those who did have given us a small glimps into the woman that she was, and shared with us the love that they had for her.
Digna is very much loved and missed by all her friends and colleagues. Her quiet dignity and the innocence of her beautiful smile will always be etched on our minds. Though she is no longer with us in the physical, her essence, her spirit will remain with us until we meet in the great beyond.
Digna's sister, Ingrid Rivera, described her as " a dynamic and humble person". And continued it by saying:
She was very generous to the family she tried to help everyone from Puerto Rico to Honduras. Education was a priorty to her and encourage her family members to continue their education as well as her friends.We will miss Digna, but she will not be forgotten.
From her cousin:
... As I sit here thinking, I can't help but think of your smile. It always lit up a room when you walked in it....
One can not begin to imagine the pain that Digna's family, and every other family who lost someone to the 9/11 attacks, has went through. And yet, whether we knew someone who lost their lives that day or not, as a country we have all been effected by it. 2996 people were taken from us that day, and all of us mourn the overwhelming loss that shall always be felt in our hearts.Special thanks to Kim at United in Memory for the quilt image. You can read about the history of the quilt here.
You may find other tributes to the lives of the 2996 people we lost that day here. UPDATE: due to the worlds worst hosting company deciding to be completely horrible, the 2996 site has been shut down after exceeding their hosting limits. The host refused to upgrade their account. A mirrored site has been put up here, so please take the time to click over to it in order to see the full list of tributes. I've spent a lot of time reading many of them, and I promise that they are some of the most touching stories you will ever read.
Tributes at blogs I read:
Renaissance Blogger
Cathy's Rants
Mother Kitty
Blue Start Chronicles
123Beta
My Vast Right Conspiracy
2996
Conservative UAW Guy
Merri Musings
Pirate's Cove
Stop the ACLU
Blonde Sagacity
Macstansbury
*More to Come