25 years ago today. September 11, 2001.
Where were you?
The world watched from different places, that’s the eeriness of 9/11—most will remember exactly where they were. It’s both unique and unforgettable.
We were in Durham. 2001 was my last year playing professional cricket—almost a secondment by then. Injured early, overlooked, out of contract. An abrupt, sobering end. Pardon the pun.
In the afternoon I walked across town with Ella in the pram to collect Kenny from school—St Oswald’s, his first year. They played on the swings. The weather was fine, and there were other parents to chat with. Eventually we made the trip back across the river and up Claypath to home base. Michele was working at the University.
TV on. Me in the kitchen getting snacks. Kenny off looking for the Toy Story VHS.
Ella had just turned four. She knew how to work the TV.
Coming in from the kitchen, I saw her staring at the screen. And that was that. We all sat there in silence. A moment in time, too early for them, but the flow-through will be there through their lifetimes.
I’ve never asked if they understood what they saw. Kenny lives in the U.S. now. I will—I should—when we’re together again.
Nick
