I didn't know it would be the last photo I would ever take of the Twin Towers.
On a balmy day in August 2001, I ran around Manhattan taking in the sights as I did once or twice a year while visiting my then-father-in-law. The twin structures were amazing and strong and sent a message that was modern, in contrast to the older sights we associate with New York such as the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building.
When I returned home from that trip, I had the photos printed and placed them into a cumulative New-York-themed photo album that held every photo I had taken in my nine years of marriage and trips to the Big Apple.
A few days after I returned home to California, my then-husband told me he didn't want to be married anymore.
I moved out and wasn't sure what to do with those albums that had proved our time together. So I placed them in storage and didn't look at them until I was ready.
I received a call on Sept. 11, 2001, from my father on the East Coast around 5:45 a.m. PST. He was distraught, and I couldn't understand what he was saying at first. He told me to turn on the television, and I saw it all playing out. I couldn't calm him down because I didn't know what to say.
It was more than a year after my divorce was final that I bought a house and started unpacking those photo albums. I opened them and searched for the last set of photos I took in New York.
I knew I would return to New York City again one day, and that opportunity came in 2009 with an invitation to attend the commissioning of the U.S.S. New York LP-21 on Nov. 7, 2009.
I was given access to this event because my Marine nephew had been invited to represent his squadron on the ship. The ship carried in its hull 7.5 tons of steel from the World Trade Center Twin Towers and the message, "Strength forged through sacrifice. Never forget."
I jumped at the chance to gear up with my 30 pounds of cameras and lenses. When the press corps from The New York Times, Associated Press, each branch of the military, and the NYPD raised their cameras, I was proud to squeeze into the pack and raise mine along with them.
Families of New York firefighters and New York Police Department officers lost in the attacks wept all around me. The admiral of the Navy, with Hillary Clinton standing by his side, declared to his crew, "Sailors, go get your ship." And hundreds of sailors ran past me on a red carpet. They headed to the next pier where the U.S.S. New York waited for them to claim her.
It was the most patriotic moment I had ever covered in my career. I welled up and couldn't seem to focus for a few minutes as I ran to catch up with the crew to meet them on the ship.
I stopped during my mad dash just for a second and grabbed a few frames of former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani who played a crucial role in guiding the city through its grieving process. He gave me a thumbs up, and I kept going to finish capturing the story.
The towers have become a symbol of moving forward for me. Years later, I have moved on and am happily remarried. I rebuilt my life, just as the World Trade Center continues to rebuild its life.
Suzette Cook is a 1990 graduate of UF's College of Journalism and Communications and a current master's student.
