I can’t say I necessarily enjoyed walking through the memorial museum, but it was a definite experience that was much needed while in NYC. I did not know what to expect from the museum, and I wasn’t sure if I would feel connected to the events at all. I was in third grade during the 9/11 attacks, and can only recall going home from school and watching the news in my living room. I personally do not know anyone directly connected to the events that day, but I was surprised at the response I had walking through the museum.
Hearing the first hand testimonies of the events and seeing the reaction photos of those in New York hit me pretty hard. I was surprised at how much the photos and words of others recalling the events affected me. What got to me the most was the small room with photos of those on the top floors of the towers who chose to take their own lives by jumping to their deaths. The people in the photos were unrecognizable and blurry. One description told the story of a woman who held down her dress during her last moments of life before jumping from the towers. I choked back tears reading the descriptions. The photos in the museum reminded me of the photos in the New Museum by Sarah Charlesworth, which showed stills of people falling from buildings, prior to the 9/11 attacks.