It was a cold, windy day in the middle of Fall when I met Bruno. Our meeting had changed my life significantly, for without that little white Bull Terrier, I am almost certain that I wouldn’t be here today. September 11th, 2001, was the day my savior found me. I remember it like it was yesterday.

It happened suddenly, no one was sure why or how, but everyone was suddenly alert when the Twin Towers were destroyed. I was merely 18 years old, just trying to make a living for myself and barely able to survive without the financial support from my parents. When the Twin Towers fell, I was in my one room apartment, sleeping peacefully. Then I heard the screaming and the smell of smoke, which instantly woke me from my slumber. It took me a moment to collect my thoughts and run outside in only a pair of pajama pants, it was very cold, but I didn’t notice it. Fear had taken over and my heart raced as I gazed in the direction of the catastrophe that was only two blocks away from me. To be honest, I was frozen still, my legs would not move, nor would my eyes. All I remember thinking about was my mom and dad.

People ran down the sidewalk, many were hysteric and sobbing, others were panicking more and more than half of them managed to run into me in their attempt to escape the devastation. That sight will forever be branded into my memory. The majestic towers looked more like a suicide hot spot than anything else. Nothing hurt quite as much as seeing the people jump to their death from the top story of the building. It finally hit me, harder than anything else, anyone could ever imagine. “Mom and dad…” That final thought was what pulled me into hysterics. I began to run faster than I ever had before. I knew that there was no chance they survived, they worked on the very top floor.

As I ran, I ocassionally ran into many people, but I could care less. The only thing that I thought of was my mom and dad, dying a fiery and painful death. I ran for a good ten minutes, then stopped to catch my breath. The wind had nipped at my face and chest, leaving the majority of my body tender and sore. The tears weren’t helping much either. ‘I’m not going to survive without them. How will I pay off loans, my car? My apartment?’ I thought, taking a few steps foreword. Finally, I came to the conclusion that it wasn’t worth it.

The next thing I did was the best thing I have ever done. I decided to run to the nearest bridge… and jump. Jump because I had just lost my parents, jump because I had no money, jump because I had no one there for me. So I took a few steps towards the side of the bridge, glancing over the side and into the icy water below. I contemplated the whole ordeal, then I slowly got atop the railing, trying hard to steady myself while looking over the rail. I closed my eyes, just about to jump, when suddenly, I was pulled back by my pants leg and after being unconscious for however long, I found myself laying in the middle of the road, a white dog sitting curled up beside my chest, shaking and shivering.

The dog glanced up at me, then instantly his tail began to wag. His eye had a black spot of fur around it, his beady eyes glistened as he looked into mine. I tried to move, but I couldn’t, which posed as a problem as people ran down the street. It wasn’t until I was nearly trampled that the bull terrier began to growl and jump up in an attempt to protect me. It worked. However, I could only smile at the dog, because as of now, I couldn’t feel anything at all.

Needless to say, the small puppy who saved me from myself was the victim of the same thing that I was. He had just become an orphan, and the blood that was on the pads of his feet proved it to be true. His mom was killed by a hysteric mob, who didn’t see her…she was trampled.

However, he had an owner, and a name. His collar said that his name was Bruno, and just this morning, I made the call to his owner… no answer. And so when reading the newspaper, I saw that his owner had died in the Twin Towers…

I am still in the hospital, a week after the incident. I suffered from fractures and more, however Bruno has been with me through it all, and he is truly my personal savior.