On that Tuesday, my two-year-old son woke me around 6:00 a.m., and I groggily turned on the TV in our living room to pop in one of his favorite VHS tapes.

He had quite a collection. Bear in the Big Blue House, Baby Mozart, VeggieTales, and loads of Sesame Street. It would still be eight months before he received his official autism diagnosis, but his repetitive interest in these videos was already very apparent.

That morning, I was grateful for his avid interest in those tapes so I could catch a bit more sleep before the true start of our day.

Before I switched the television’s feed to the VCR, the screen filled with an image of smoke billowing from a tall building. It was after 9:00 a.m. on the East coast, and reporters with anxious voices were saying something about an airplane, possibly two. The newscasters were clearly caught off-guard and trying to understand what was happening.

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