What major historical events do you remember?
The terrorist attacks of 9/11 are definitely what stands out most vividly for me although this awful incident was more than twenty-three years ago. There were other terrible events such as the attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan in 1981, the start of Desert Storm a decade later in 1990, and the bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995 that I can quickly recall. However, the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in 2001 did, and still does overshadow any of the other historic events as far as I’m concerned.
During that time period it was rare for me to turn on the tv or radio and listen to the news. I didn’t have internet or a smart phone (this was several years before that was available), so I had no idea at first what had happened that morning. That week I was in Scottsdale, Arizona housesitting for my partner who was in London for several days. I still had to take a bus each morning from there to my job at the Arizona State Veteran’s Home in central Phoenix. It struck me as very odd that there was little traffic on the roads and no planes overhead as I walked up the street to my bus stop.
The morning felt very off, and I was perturbed, knowing something was very wrong – but completely unaware of what it was. When I got on the bus there were few other passengers (definitely odd for a morning commute on that major east/west route). Neither the driver or anyone spoke during that ride – and the atmosphere was so distraught and heavy you could’ve cut it with a knife. When I arrived at work, it was very much the same. Nobody in the kitchen where I worked was talking and there was no arguing among them – which usually typified most mornings.
I didn’t feel comfortable asking anyone what was up. The morning felt so anxiety laden and there was the disconcerting effect of trying to walk under water or something. When I delivered the first dining cart to one of the dining rooms all the residents were riveted to the big screen tv. Then I saw the unforgettable images of those planes crashing into the Trade Towers and then collapsing…I was so stunned, unable to utter a sound, and felt paralyzed for several minutes as though bolted to floor. It was hard to get my bearings and get through the day. No doubt, everyone else felt the same way.
Although terrorism was always been a sad reality of the world, the United States had never experienced something so drastic – that came as a total surprise, with the exception of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The dreadful events of 2001 changed so much of our lives here. This is especially true where travel and access to government facilities is concerned. Life has become more anxious and complicated because of the magnitude of what happened that day. We will always feel less secure than during any previous time in our nation’s history. There is no turning back.
