Tim Collins of tangletrade.com sent me an article about his 9/11 moment. I know many of us have them and as we remember those who were lost on this 10th anniversary of that tragic day, I wanted to share Tim’s experience with you. It is certainly a chilling tale as he reminds us how our lives have forever changed.
What Has Changed Isn’t the Right Question
I remember that day well, as most everyone does. Most wish they did not remember. I remember watching CNBC and seeing the first reports of the WTC Center on fire immediately thinking, “What idiot tried to fly his small plane in between buildings in downtown New York City?” There isn’t a time I hear about 9-11 that I don’t regret that thought or actually wish it had been the case. However, everyone has their stories, but here is a slightly different one. A story that occurred after 9-11, not on it.
Planes were grounded , but my wife and I were on one of the first flights after September 11th heading to Minnesota. It wasn’t the first day you could fly, but only a few days later. Walking through the airport was surreal and to this day only a blur, because I just kept looking around and wandering who I could trust.
We got on our Northwest flight direct to the Midwest, but we were flying out of the Baltimore-DC area, so I was still quite paranoid. There were no issues with the takeoff and shortly after reaching cruising altitude you could see everyone was more at ease. The feeling of ease did not last the entire flight though.
About halfway through the flight, the Captain came over the loud speaker to announce we had to make an unscheduled landing. That was it. No further information. Nothing. Ease turned to tension. Tension turned to dread.
We touched ground on a tarmac in Detroit. Rumors buzzed among passengers. It was a tarmac used more for commercial planes rather than passenger planes. As we sat, folks hurriedly turned on their cell phones to try and figure out what was going on. Texting wasn’t a choice back then, nor was internet access through the phone. As we sat there no one was exiting the plane. No one was getting on, nor any service trucks approaching the plane. I called a bond trading friend of mine at American Express. I was so nervous I dialed the number wrong…twice.
We had been on the ground for 10 or 15 minutes when I finally got through to him and asked him what was new with the market. His reply spoke for itself and went something like this: “it’s been a pretty quiet day except a short bit ago a rumor hit the floors about a plane being hijacked in Detroit or something.” I sat stunned for a minute, then said, “Ken, I’ve got to go.” At least I think I did. I may have just hung up.
I looked at my wife and didn’t know what to say. We were actually on the way to Minnesota as a vacation, but also to find out if we were pregnant with our first child. She isn’t the kind of person to shy away from a fight when she needs too, but I wasn’t going to let that be an option. I could go throw the millions of thoughts that went through my head, but I think each person would have their own.
Thankfully, I didn’t have to take my thoughts very far as moments later the Captain came over the speaker to apologize for the delay and ask everyone to return to their seats as we’d be taking off again soon.
After thirty minutes on the ground, we were airborne again. Nothing else was said. Not a single word.
When we arrived in Minneapolis, we spent the entire evening watching the news waiting for some word of what happened. Again, nothing. There was no twitter or Facebook or social media to search out more rumors or thoughts. To this day, we still have no idea what happened. If it weren’t for 9-11, I doubt I’d ever give it another thought. People ask what has changed. What hasn’t? Everything has changed.