Shocking Memories That Take You Back

[tubatooter1940]

1963, John Kennedy was reported shot on T.V. as I was trying to demonstrate a vacuum cleaner in this guy's living room. He apologized and said he needed to watch this. I headed home and my wife and I were glued to the television for days.
9/11, I was having early morning heart bypass surgery. I woke up in ICU hearing reports about being at war and the ITC attack from a T.V. nearby.
When my wife showed up, I asked her how long I was out.
I'm lucky the surgery crew was able to do such a good job on me with all that going on.

[MaryAnn]

Mine too is 9/11. We were on vacation in a small town named Ucluelet on the west coast of Vancouver Island in BC, Canada.

We slept in, finally turned on the TV, probably to get the weather, at something like 10 a.m. Saw a picture of a jet ramming the Trade Center. Assumed it was a movie, wondered what Armageddon movie it was. Realized shortly it was not a movie. Got really, really depressed. But yeah, I remember the room, the TV, the incredulity of it. Even remember thinking that if we didn't get to go home because of this, we could be in a much worse place, I mean, if this was WWIII at least we could catch fish to live on; only problem was having my cats on the other side of the border.

MA

[tubafatness]

My mom has told me before of the day when JFK died. She was in elementary school, and the most acute memory she has of the day is of her teacher walking into the room crying, and then telling them that the President had been shot.

My first clear memory, out of anything, is when my Dad brought home my family's first dog. He was a collie/golden retriever mix that we named Sam. Unfortunately, another vivid memory I have of that dog is helping my dad carry him out to the car, on his way to the vet a couple years back. He had to be put to sleep, as he had a tumor that had pushed his heart into his ribcage.

I also remember the day my dad brought home our next and current dog. He is a mix between a purebred Black Lab and a purebred German Shepherd, and his name is Bear. We got him when he was fairly young, just a little thing. That night he fell asleep on top of a pillow, and was so far asleep that he rolled off the pillow without even opening an eye.

He's an interesting story that my mom has told me before, and one which sticks out for both of us.

When I was born, back in '89, my family was living in Chatham, IL. My mom went into labor two months before my due date. After being rushed to St. John's Hospital in Springfield, IL, the doctors had a look to see how early I was. They originally thought I was 6 weeks early, but found out then that I was actually 9 weeks early. On top of that, my lung development was 12 weeks away from being fully ready for birth. They put my mom on several types of high-powered steroids, to speed up my growth as much as possible before delivery. As my mom related to me, they had to turn off all lights in the room, seal the windows from any outside light, and turn the health monitors away from the bed, as the steroids had given her a migraine so bad that any direct light made her have a seizure. After several hours of this, my lungs had been pumped up to being 9 weeks premature, along with the rest of my body. They had to take her off the steroids, as the treatment had moved from helping my growth to taking us both to the brink of death.

After all of that stuff, my mom finally went in to give birth. She had to have a spinal tap, to alleviate all of the different kinds of pain going around. This is the part of the story she remembers most. The spinal tap was causing unbearable pain for my mom, and luckily a nurse came to help calm her down, and get her through all of that. She distinctly remembers looking up at this nurse, who had a surgical mask on. She could tell that he was an Asian man, and remembers starting to feel very relaxed and calm while he was holding her hand and saying everything was fine. Since St. John's is a Catholic hospital, there were crucifixes and other Christian items on the walls. My mom remembers looking at the man, and seeing on the wall behind him a crucifix hanging there. She has said if it wasn't for that man and his help, she might not have made it through the procedure as well as she did. Later, after my birth, she asked the other nurses and doctors who the Asian nurse was. According to all of those she spoke to, there was no Asian nurse or doctor that worked at the hospital at that time.

The first half of that story was related to me just last night. I've always been disappointed with how my lungs work, with such a small lung capacity and all. Then again, in light of all that trouble, I should probably be a little more thankful.

[OldsRecording]

I had a shocking moment once - when I was sword fighting with a car antenna and hit an electric fence. That shocked the **** out of me.

Figuratively or literally?

[OldsRecording]

Let me rephrase that. "It shocked the piss out of me."

Let me reiterate...

[BVD Press]

I think we could all post OKC, 9/11, Katrina etc. but for me it was the after of these events that are burned unto my memory:

OKC: Visiting the site of the bombing and seeing the chairs where the building used to be located. Looking at the fence that surrounded the disaster and realizing all of the trinkets that people left to remember there relatives were still there many years later. I am not religious, but going across the street and seeing the Virgin Mary was very moving. You can see things on TV, but going really stirs memories, brings it to life etc. If you have never been there, IMHO it is one of the most and well designed memorials out there:

http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/

9/11: A week after 9/11 I had to go to DC. Driving on I-95 and not seeing the Twin Towers or any planes in the sky while driving through NJ. Arriving in DC and seeing a giant hole in the Pentagon. The Pentagon was the big one for me. Not just seeing the hole, but noticing that it was a direct hit. No tracks in the grass etc.

Katrina: Driving the coast of Mississippi and only seeing foundations for as far as the eye can see was quite stunning. Going to New Orleans almost 2 years later and realizing it hadn't changed that much since the hurricane. Going into the 9th Ward and trying to avoid power lines, looking into houses that were just wood with no sheet rock, paint, furniture etc. There was also hope with the Musicians Village:

http://www.habitat-nola.org/projects/mu ... illage.php

There are also lots of positive events: attending concerts, winning a gig, visiting a landmark, etc.

I had a positive and negative the same day: Watched the funeral of Princess Diana overnight and then got up and got married a few hours later.

I you happen to children, good or bad events with them will get burned into your memory.

[Chadtuba]

For me the big one was when the school shootings happened in fall 2006 in the Amish community and in the mountains of Colorado just a few hours from me. It was my 2nd year teaching and the realization that I was responsible for those young lives if somebody were to come into my school and my classroom. I spent a lot of time with "daymares" trying to figure out what I would do if I were put into that type of a situation. Would I put myself between my students and a mad man.

It almost came true a few weeks later. My music room was in the elementary building but my first two classes were JH band followed by HS band with the JH/SH across the street and the students coming to me. About halfway through JH band the elementary principal came into my room and told me that when my class ended that I needed to escort the JH across the street and wait for the HS students and escort them to the band room. Didn't think too much of it at the moment but found out later that morning that INS had raided the potato warehouse down the road (the school was in farm country with potato fields on all sides) and a few of the illegal imegrants ran out of their carrying weapons I hope I'm never put into that type of situation, but if I am I pray that I have the strength to protect my students no matter the cost.