At the 9/11 Museum, little things are the big deal

There was a stirring series of speeches today at Ground Zero as officials dedicated the 9/11 museum today.

With a few exceptions, each speaker tried the impossible: finding the rhetoric to describe meaning to the day two planes destroyed the icons of American financial power in the world. But words seemed to fail them all.

Things don’t fail, however. The red bandanna Welles Crowther used to protect himself while he helped people out of the buildings and which was later used to identify his body (Scroll to 32:52 in the video above). There are wallets and shoes, and a charred wristwatch that are now part of the museum.

There’s also this red envelope, the New York Times reports. It’s just an envelope with an invitation to a wedding rehearsal. A man from London found it on the street as he fled the carnage. He picked it up and mailed it when he got back home, saying it was his act of defiance.

From the archive: “Let me tell you about my son”

NY vs. 9/11 Families (NewsCut)