Reader memory: Heather Roche of Mystic

The skies were blue and there was a breeze blowing through the trees. This was all witnessed from my room of the maternity ward in Bronxville, NY.

My husband Leo who worked high rise construction in Manhattan was at my side as we anxiously waited for the birth of our first child.... while Leo paced and talked on his phone, I watched “Good Morning America”........ then everything changed as I listened to Charlie and Diane report a plane had crashed into Tower 1... within seconds we were watching live coverage and then shortly after saw the second plane hit. Next came the reports of Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania.

In that moment I was terrified, not only for the countless human beings who were fighting for their lives to survive but also for this little being inside of me who would shortly be fighting to enter into this very uncertain world. And fight she did. At 4:00 Maggie Mae entered this world via emergency C section.

For a few moments everything that is ugly and evil vanished as my daughter and I stared at each other for the first time. As any mother can tell you the feeling of raw love and the need to protect is unbelievable when you hold your child in your arms. I cried for all the mothers and fathers that day who would no longer be able to hold their children.

Our daughter’s birth brought hope and happiness to many people we knew on such a tragic day ... I believe she and the many other children born that day are a testament to the victims, life is beautiful and precious.