Denial

By Mary Kangas: I was working at a company where the owner was in denial about the events that were unfolding that morning. Our purchasing agent came into the main office and informed us of the Pentagon attack. The office personnel were then allowed to go into our conference room, where there was a television. We turned it on and saw the other attacks on the World Trade Center unfold.

After only about 15-20 minutes of watching the news reports, we were all told to return to our desks and work like everything was normal. The Internet was still fairly new at that time, and it was difficult to find live-streaming news, but I tried.

At lunchtime, I left the building, sat in my vehicle, tuned into an AM radio station, listened to the broadcasting and cried for a full 30 minutes until I had to go back to my desk. As I drove home, back to Waterloo, the towers were coming down.

For the next several months I was absolutely glued to CNN and other new channels -- possessed to watch the analysis of this tragic event that has changed our lives forever and ever. My daughter was actually worried about my mental well-being because I felt so compelled to continue to follow the coverage.