A Celebration of Life: One World Trade Center

April 26, 2016

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by Danny de la Cruz[/x_text][/x_column][x_column bg_color=”” type=”3/4″ style=”padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px; “][x_text]To this day, I remember the exact moment when I heard of the horrific news — I was driving on the highway when the news announcements started coming through the radio. As I drove in a daze, the questions of how and why were quickly followed by the overflow of emotions – from fear, anger and sadness.

Less than five months earlier, I had actually spent a long weekend in NYC to explore this wonderful city. But, rather than selecting a hotel in Midtown like I usually do, I ended up in the Financial District in the Millennium Hilton, directly across the street from the Twin Towers. With a room nearly on the upper most floor, I would wake up each morning and gaze upon the two buildings across the street. It was a majestic sight.

Since 9/11, I had a chance to visit the site during construction but had never gotten a chance to see the new complex and tower that had emerged from the rubble. This past winter, I finally had a chance to do so and discover how much had changed since the years that followed.

The new tower is striking from any angle. It stands as a symbol of freedom and in defiance to all that happened. I felt proud staring at it. As I walked onto the new complex and saw the two giant reflecting pools which represent the footprints of the Twin Towers, sadness fell upon me. Names of the victims are engraved along the walls of the pools and I slowly ran my gloved hand over many of them, connecting with those that we lost.

I walked around some more exploring the complex on an extremely frigid day. But despite the cold, I was surrounded by so many people coming together to remember and celebrate the lives of those that were taken away from all of us. I will never forget.

Photo credit: by Audrey – follow her on Instagram at @audreydlc