Never Forget — Where Were You On 9-11?

Tiles Across America in Greenwich Village across from St. Vincent Hospital.

I was on strike.
Picketing at 580 Booth.
Someone came up and told me
that a plane had hit the WTC.

My first image was
of a Cessna lost in the fog.
That's all my brain could accept.
A plane lost in the fog.

Later, one of the concierge
at the loading dock told me
that a plane hit the Pentagon.
I corrected him and
told him it was the WTC.

After the third report of
planes hitting buildings
I went across the street to a coffee shop
where everyone inside was
oblivious to what was going on.

The sports channel was playing
on the corner TV showing the
highlights of the night before
I asked the girl at the counter
to switch over to the news network.

That's when the world changed for me.


— Mark Butkus