my dear friend, aimee alampay (kowalak) works across the street from ground zero.
she emailed me today. this is part of her letter:
".....I think a lot of people were actually smart enough to stay home (the train was not as full as a regular day) As the PATH train entered the World Trade Center station,
I could see the people in Ground Zero and could hear the names of the victims.
I was stopping myself from crying.
Sabi ko nga ba I should have stayed home.
The whole day (as in from 9 to 3), we heard the bells toll.
We thought it was from the church but when we finally got the courage to go out again (because we were starving),
we saw that they had set up these huge bells on the street, maybe 5 or 6 of them, where anybody can just pull the rope for each of their family members and friends.
Hay! It was emotionally draining.
And the whole day I was thinking that I was glad I didn't know Jeff then or I would have been a wreck....."