What strikes me now, is a transformation. The days after September 11, 2001 felt like a different America from the one I read about now. New York City felt noble in its unity. It's a strange word to use - but the way people came together made me feel better about humanity.
The two planes going into the two landmarks dominating the city felt like an attack on all of us. People soon gathered in their thousands, silently with candles, in Union Square. Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani seemed like a leader who led us all. "I want the people of New York to be an example to the rest of the country, and the rest of the world, that terrorism can't stop us," he said, which got it exactly right.
A few days after the attacks, the Stars and Stripes was everywhere, including in a Middle Eastern bakery near where I lived in the East Village. People across the political spectrum felt the flag was theirs.
