Where Were You by Alan Jackson (9/11 20th Anniversary Tribute Cover)

In honor of the 20th Anniversary of 9/11, I decided to do a cover of Alan Jackson's "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)." This song is one of the most emotional songs in country music. I might as well tell my story in regard to what I remember that day, September 11th, 2001.

I grew up in Staten Island, NY and was at school that morning. I was in kindergarten and one moment during class, things got quiet. The teacher was crying and we didn't know what was going on. I don't remember if they told us anything, but soon after that everyone's parents came to pick them up. My Uncle Tommy (former Colonel in the U.S. Army) picks me and my siblings up from school and take us home. I remember walking upstairs in my home and seeing the sun glimmering on the wood floor. I wondered where everyone was. My mother had seen everything from our top windows. Our deck was on the roof of the house, so once we made our way up there, F-16 type jets were flying across the sky. We still have a home video of my younger brother and I shouting in excitement about the jets. It makes for a pretty eerie video, as we were young and didn't understand what was really happening yet.

It wasn't long before I understood the tragedy, though. Down the street, residents put together a monument for Staten Islander's lost in the terrorist attacks. It was called Angel's Circle. It wasn't uncommon to know someone who lost a loved one on that day. Two houses down from our home, two young kids lost both parents. They knocked on our neighbors door wondering where their mom and dad were. This event became a reality for so many people.

There is nothing that compares to the feelings of the community immediately after 9/11. Everyone was so filled with American spirit and togetherness. Love was spread to and from every neighbor on every street. What a time to be alive. God Bless all those who lost their lives and all those mourning again on this day 20 years later, September 11, 2021.