My Life Down the Road: City Streets and Bright Lights

We visited the 9/11 Memorial first while the sun was setting over the skyline
In a way it reminded me of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington
Simple, elegant, sobering, reverent, and hauntingly beautiful
With the new Freedom Tower keeping watch over the grounds
It was a moving sight
The footprint of each tower featured reflecting pools
Surrounded by thirty foot falls on every side, lit with the soft glow of lights
The water cascaded down into the pool then stopped and flowed over an invisible edge
In the center of each pool is a square black hole
That descends seventy feet below the surface into the darkness
The names of all those who perished that awful day
Are stamped in metal and line the edges of each pool
The names are also lit with a soft light that filters through the letters
When you read the names silently to yourself
You can’t help but think about that person
Who were they? What was their life like? Who did they leave behind? How is their family?
I’ve always felt that reading names on headstones or memorials
Is a way to remember, calling that person by their name so they’re not forgotten
There are places to sit in the park under the trees, to think, to reflect, to remember
The city is in the process of planting a tree for every person who lost their life
They’re also working on a museum that will include historical artifacts from that day
Unfortunately hurricane Sandy flooded the construction site
And there’s a massive cleanup underway

THE FAB FOUR

9-11 MEMORIAL

FREEDOM TOWER

We ate dinner at the Heartland Brewery in the basement of the Empire State Building
The food was excellent and we enjoyed each other’s company
The ambiance was that of a 1930’s Art Deco bistro
Afterwards Marilyn and I went all the way to the top of the Empire State Building
To see the gorgeous city lights for miles in all directions
They stretched out before us like a twinkling fairy land
We could see the Brooklyn Bridge, the Statue of Liberty in the harbor, the Flatiron building
The Chrysler building, Macy’s, where parade preparations were taking place
And the ice skaters in Bryant Park gliding around and around in the frosty night air
The view was amazing and took our breaths away
The building itself is a work of art; an architectural treasure
It was a great way to end our first day, high above the city streets and bright lights