It has been named Reflecting Absence. The design features two large, square waterfalls on the site of the two towers. The names of each victim will be engraved in the metal alongside the waterfalls. It’s a simple yet powerful representation of what was lost on September 11, 2001. Of the nearly 3,000 people who were killed in the terrorist attacks, approximately 2,700 of them died in New York City, either on the hijacked planes or in the World Trade Center buildings. Moreover, the image of the two towers burning and collapsing has come to symbolize the events of 9/11 far more than the attack on the Pentagon, where a memorial has already been dedicated.

Across from the memorial is a bronze sculpture in the wall alongside the firehouse of Fire Department of New York (FDNY) Company 10. Based just steps from the World Trade Center site, their fire crews were among the first to respond to the attacks. Many of Company 10’s firefighters were among the 343 rescue workers who perished, and this sculpture was dedicated to those who died trying to save those in the towers. The image is one of firefighters responding to the disaster as a plane struck the South Tower, the North Tower still burning from the earlier attack. An inscription reads, simply, “Dedicated to those who fell and to those who carry on. May we never forget.” The names and ranks of the firefighters are engraved below the sculpture.

Beside the memorial are candles, flowers and personal letters. Some are addressed to the fallen; others are general expressions of sadness, compassion and hope. A poster had been placed there as well, with the photos and names of all 343 fallen firefighters. Police officers from all over the country, and from around the globe, left shoulder patches from their departments. Officers from as far away as Germany came to pay respects for the 60 police officers who were killed – 23 of them from the New York Police Department (NYPD) and 37 from the Port Authority Police Department, which manages the World Trade Center site.

The dedication of the New York memorial comes just over four months after the death of Osama bin Laden. Despite the celebrations that followed his death, however, any sense of closure that followed will not be noticeable in the wave of emotion that comes with such a tragic anniversary. After the attacks in 2001, the World Trade Center site was one of fear, confusion and destruction. Because of the city of New York’s hard work, it can now be a site of peace, calm and reconstruction.