Reason Wilken
On the fateful morning of September 11, 2001 America awoke to a nightmare beyond description. The unspeakable, the unthinkable had happened in our own backyard. The horrifying images of civilian aircrafts slamming into the twin towers of New York City’s World Trade Center in part of a massive terrorist attack will prove immortal in our national consciousness. We watched in disbelief as our largest symbols of wealth, capitalism and power collapsed into piles of dust.
My condolences and prayers go out to all the victims of this horrible tragedy, their families and friends, and all of the rescue workers and volunteers who donated their services in this time of tragedy. Although I was fortunate enough not to have any friends or relatives who were in Manhattan or Washington D.C. at the time of the attacks, the event still holds a personal significance for me.
A little over a month ago, I applied for a Financial Advisor position at Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley was one of the largest tenants of the World Trade Center, occupying approximately 50 floors of the first tower. The position I was interested in had a training program, part of which would take place at Morgan Stanley’s New York City National Sales Training Center. At the time, I was very interested in pursuing a career in finance and I was also very excited about working in the World Financial District in Lower Manhattan. Although my fate let me in another direction, I was horrified to hear that so much of the Morgan Stanley firm was affected.
As a human being and as an American, I was shocked, saddened and angered by the attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center. It is too early to consider the impact on anything but the families and friends of the all the individuals who fell victim to these violent attacks. The full fallout of these unbelievably horrific events will surely take time to sink in. While my thoughts and prayers are with all of those who lost loved ones and gave their time (and in many cases their lives as well) in rescue efforts, this event gives me certain pause.
As I watched the towers collapse, besides feeling shocked I thought “What if……What if”…