September 11, 2001 – Tributes to Victims of the 9/11 Attack on the Twin Towers

Tributes to the victims of the 9/11 tragedy are varied and moving. Perhaps the most well-known in the “Tribute in Light” – the commemorative public art installation first presented six months after 9/11 and then every year thereafter, from dusk to dawn, on the night of September 11.

New York also has a 9/11 Memorial Museum that tells the story of 9/11 through artifacts, imagery, personal stories, and interactive technology. It includes core exhibitions, special exhibitions, and rotating displays in the Museum’s 110,000 square feet of space.

FDNY Ladder 3 firetruck recovered from the World Trade Center site after September 11, 2001. Collection 9/11 Memorial Museum, Courtesy of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Photo by Dan Winters

There are murals all around New York paying tribute to the lost, and a short list here of books, film, and art that address the tragedy.

This an anonymous poem memorializing what happened is particular affecting:

If I Knew

If I knew it would be the last time
That I’d see you fall asleep,
I would tuck you in more tightly
And pray the Lord, your soul to keep.

If I knew it would be the last time
That I see you walk out the door,
I would give you a hug and kiss
And call you back for one more.

If I knew it would be the last time
I’d hear your voice lifted up in praise,
I would video tape each action and word,
So I could play them back day after day.

If I knew it would be the last time,
I could spare an extra minute
To stop and say “I love you,”
Instead of assuming you would KNOW I do.

If I knew it would be the last time
I would be there to share your day,
Well I’m sure you’ll have so many more,
So I can let just this one slip away.

For surely there’s always tomorrow
To make up for an oversight,
And we always get a second chance
To make everything just right.

There will always be another day
To say “I love you,”
And certainly there’s another chance
To say our “Anything I can do?”

But just in case I might be wrong,
And today is all I get,
I’d like to say how much I love you
And I hope we never forget.

Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,
Young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance
You get to hold your loved one tight.

So if you’re waiting for tomorrow,
Why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes,
You’ll surely regret the day,

That you didn’t take that extra time
For a smile, a hug, or a kiss
And you were too busy to grant someone,
What turned out to be their one last wish.

So hold your loved ones close today,
And whisper in their ear,
Tell them how much you love them
And that you’ll always hold them dear

Take time to say “I’m sorry,”
“Please forgive me,” “Thank you,” or “It’s okay.”
And if tomorrow never comes,
You’ll have no regrets about today.”

Author Unknown