Saturday, September 11, 2010

A 911 Remembrance and Happy Pink Saturday September 11th, 2010.

   Nine years ago today, I was at work. I am an RN and was working on a very busy cardiothoracic surgical ward at a hospital in eastern Ontario. This ward also had a burn unit in which some of us were trained to work. A coworker had been on break and watching tv in the planning room and came out to tell us that New York City was being bombed.  When we could, we watched in total disbelief, the events that were happening south of the Canada/US border.
   My parents lived through the second world war and tried to instill in my brothers and myself a sense of always "being prepared". This sense kicked into high gear when the tragedy started unfolding. I called my Mom and Dad's to see if they knew what was going on. I had left my 13 year old daughter at home alone with a bad cold and wanted Dad to go to pick her up. I didn 't want her to be at home alone watching the horrific scenes on tv. Mom answered the phone and said that Dad had already left to go and get her.  One child taken care of. Our 15 year old son was at school, so I trusted that he was taken care of also. My husband was at work at a local college, so I knew where he was. You may ask, why was I worried about my family when we were so many miles away in Canada? Well, we live relatively close to Canada's largest airbase in Trenton, Ontario. If there was some kind of Armageddon occurring, that airbase would surely be a target and I needed to know where my family was.
   One of my colleagues, a young woman in her late 20s thought I was being weird (paranoid!). She was born to parents who themselves were born after the war and she did not have children yet.  She had a totally different life experience. I explained to her about my need to be prepared and my concern with the airbase.  She said, "It's too far away. It won't affect us." I knew better!
    As that horrible day unfolded our manager came to us to to let us know that an emergency meeting had been held with the upper management at the hospital and "we" were preparing to accept possible burn casualties. After watching those horrifying scenes on tv I said to some coworkers. "I don't think there will be many casualties to nurse". I received more strange looks. I just knew that there was no way that very many people would survive the catastrophe that was occurring before our very eyes.; not enough to warrant bringing them all the way to our hospital many hours away. As my shift drew to a close at 7pm that day it became evident that I was right. It was plain to everyone's eyes that not many would survive those towering infernos and hijacked planes.
    Nine years have slipped by since that day. The world has changed. My children have grown. My parents are gone now. My husband and I are older. Everyone now knows how the events of September 11, 2001 have forever changed the lives of virtually everyone on our planet Earth.  We, as the Human race, must not let this happen again.  Draw your family close. Love them. Get to know your neighbours. Become involved with your community. Be tolerant, but also be observant. Speak out against hate without imbuiing more hatred. Do your best. Wake up every day with a smile and understand that we live on the most priviledged continent on Earth. We are a lucky bunch of coconuts. Let's do what we can to make our Earth a better place for everyone.
   On this memorable anniversary I am joining Beverly at http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/  for Pink Saturday. My pink post is going to be a small one because I have been working to get some furniture projects completed while the weather is still warm. I have posted every day this past week, so scrollback and take a look at what I have been up to!!


I did manage to stop into my favorite thrift stores this past week and picked up a few pink lovelies. Above you will see a vintage 1960s towel with pretty crocheted edging.

Here is a small ginger jar with a lovely pink rose bouquet transfer on it. It is made by the Sadler Pottery Company of England.

This is a small pickle dish with a lustre glaze and sweet pink roses. It is made in Germany.

This is a picture of my bedside table. I have all kinds of soothing pinks close by me! The drapes are pink silk damask that I scored a few years ago for $2. each.....I got four panels!! I think they are from the 1940s. They each measure  84 in by 72 in. , are lined and are very, very heavy!! I washed them very carefully in many bathtubs full of cool, soapy water and then dried them on the clothes line. They took hours to iron!!!I then modified them from a pinch-pleat to a rod pocket. I think it was worth all the effort!  There is the pink magazine rack that I bought at an auction last year and then painted. The lamp was a Sally Ann $3 purchase. The cover of my journal is a very pretty collage of pink flowers.

Looking closer now you can see the strand of pinky pearls Tim bought for me when we were on our vacation in St Lucia a year ago. They are draped over an oblong, pink milkglass bowl which I use to drop my jewelry in at the end of the day. The small creamware vase has pink ranunculus flowers in it. The crystal clock is from the 1950s and belonged to my Mom. The tiny Eiffel Tower is from the 1960s and is made from a very pretty pink copper!!
 I hope you have enjoyed our visit today.
The weather is predicted to be sunny and a pleasantly warm 23 degrees. I am off to work on the third piece of the wall unit!!
Take care.
Love and many warm hugs,
Laura.


  

14 comments:

  1. Wonderful story/tribute and pink Saturday post. Thank you for sharing this today. Have a lovely pink Saturday!
    Denise

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  2. What a cute bedside table, so many beautiful pinks in there!

    Hugs
    Charo

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  3. I love your bedside table!!!! And those drapes...beyond gorgeous. I love any and all things associated with the 1940's.

    My brother-in-law (hubby's sister's husband) travels for a living. He was due to fly from Atlanta to Boston that day. My sister-in-law was unable to reach him on his cell and was in near-panic mode (as we all were) until she heard from him. Of course, he had never left Atlanta, as the planes were grounded. But I remember the anxiety of not knowing whether or not he was safe. So, I would be right there with you on wondering whether your family was safe...even in Canada.

    Have a wonderful day,
    Patti

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  4. Happy Pink Saturday Sweetie...
    What a beautiful share today. I love your write about the 9/11 incident. Your thoughts, your prayers, your concerns, just beautiful. Even being a good distance away you knew that it could happen anywhere, at anytime, to anyone of us.

    Your pinks are just gorgeous sweet friend. That towel is TDF. So pretty and I love the curtains and your little bedside table. How precious it is. LOVE it.

    Have a gorgeous Saturday sweet friend. Many hugs and much love, Sherry

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  5. I have enjoyed my visit, Laura, thank you. You have shared some lovely pinks and I love your little bedside table.
    I remember well how 9-11 affected me! My little grandson was three months old and I wondered what kind of world he was going to have to grow up in! My boys all called me that day just to hear my voice. One boy lives here but the other two were both away in school. One in Vancouver, a big airport, as you know, and the other in Calgary. It was impossible for us all to be together but it helped to talk to one another. Thank you for your lovely tribute and for your visit. Happy Pink Saturday to you, my friend.

    Blessings,
    Sandi

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  6. Your tribute is beautiful! It was not the kind of day when anyone wanted to be alone. We all held each other close, watching the horror unfold before us. Although nine years have passed, the memories of that day are still so fresh. Lest we never forget.
    Lisa@SuburbanRetreat

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  7. Laure, I had no idea Canada was involved beyond those wonderful (too weak a descriptive word, they were beyond wonderful) people in Nova Scotia. Thank you for sharing.

    I'm spending my blog visit time this week to catch up with all Pink Saturday posts. Each tribute is another way to remember...from a PS friend.

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  8. Hard day to forget! I just remember feeling the need to ensure all of my family was safe even though we live 8 hours away from NYC. However, you are right too, as there was a lot of speculation abut what would happen next!
    Your bedside pinks are so pretty and the drapes! Wow, amazing!
    Thanks for stopping by my blog Laura and sharing your story! I do hope your brother is doing well these days! He sure deserves it!

    Hugs and Happy belated PS,
    Jacalyn

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  9. Dear Laura,

    Thank you for leaving such a lovely comment on my blog, wherein you shared memories of making a day trip with your mom and the two of y'all dug up some pink asters on the way. What a beautiful story...and I'm sure a very cherished memory for you.

    Are you actually allowed to dig up flowers along the road there in Canada? I envision being fined if I did that in the US.

    How totally lovely to look out and see those sweet little flowers and be reminded of a wonderful time with your momma. Thank you so much for sharing that beautiful memory.

    Blessings and hugs,
    Patti

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  10. Hi Laura! Thanks for your note on my blog... You know when I saw that cute little lamp at the sale, you actually popped into my head. I was going to write to you and send you a picture of my newly found "pink" lamp but you beat me to it. Have a pinktabulous week!

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  11. Hi Laura!
    I really enjoyed reading your tribute to your 911 memories. I too had a mother who had deep memories of Pearl Harbor and growing up during WW2. We American's are so blessed to have such wonderful friend in Canada!

    Also, your found pretties are making me want to get out to visit my favorite thrifting place. Hopefull soon!
    Belated HPS!
    Lorena

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  12. Oh girly...I haven't received anything from you as of yet. The mail in the USA is soooo slow. I promise to write right away when I do!

    Now...just have to tell you how much I LOVE the bedside table. Truly SWEET!

    Hope you have a wonderful week! I promise to write soon!

    xo~Rebecca

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  13. Hi, Laura, and thank you for the beautiful tribute for September 11. Our Canandian friends and neighbors have always been a source of strength and encouragement to the United States. Thank you!! Your pinks were all very pretty. You have such a lovely home. God bless you~Vicki

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  14. Hi Laura
    Your post was very interesting to read and brought back my own memories of that tragic day. I was at work also and my son called me to tell me that a plane had hit one of the Twin Towers. At that time they didn't know what was really happening. When he called we could never imagine what would unfold just minutes later....very sad and tragic.

    Its hard to imagine so many years have passed since that day....

    I love your finds. Thrifting is so much fun when you come across beauties like that. Your end table is cute painted in pink and I can imagine how long it took you to iron those drapes...oh my!

    oh...you asked about my birthday. I'm a fellow Ontarion Capricorn....mine is on the 3rd. Fun.

    Hope you had a good weekend...
    *hugs*
    Judi

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