I originally was going to write that I wasn't sure if it changed me or not...then I thought of how I feel as I go through security before getting on a plane, and looking at people, silently profiling them I watch people as I'm in line to pay for groceries, wondering if they're going to go on a rampage...so I guess I'm more paranoid than I used to be.

I got a call from DH that morning telling me what happened as the second plane hit. I watched the Today Show also, and remember Mick at the Pentagon reporting there was some type of explosion on the other side of the facility from where he sat...it felt as if the world was ending...DH worked in downtown Chicago, and he called as he rushed for the trains, as they evacuated the whole downtown after reports that the Sears Tower was next to be hit. DD called from school crying asking where her dad was, and I relieved her fears telling her he was already coming home.

I remember Katie Couric reporting, "I just talked to a friend who is up on one of the top floors...he said, 'We're f....ing dying up here.' Then the phone went dead."

I also remember the looks on the faces of the crowds as they watched the first tower fall...I will never forget that, because it reflected my gut...pure horror.

9/11 also clarified for me how important my loved ones are to me...the veil was ripped aside, and what is truly important was revealed...