September 11, 2001

The day started as a normal day for the people who lived and worked in Manhattan. Then the first of two planes hit the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m., shattering Americans' assumptions of domestic peace and safety.

By simple coincidence, author Jodi Graber Pratt, a 48-year-old businesswoman, was at the WTC the morning of 9/11. She initially was only aware of an unearthly sound pressing low over her head. A split second later, the North Tower was savagely ripped open and burst into flames above her.

This was just the beginning of the devastation that would follow.

Imprisoned within Manhattan for several excruciating days after the attacks, she found herself in an alternate USA, where assumptions about security, safety, and freedom were suspended. Anguish and despair gripped New York and the United States, where terrorism was, now, more than merely a threat.

The experience triggered a multi-year process of recall and evaluation to reflect on how the United States—and especially the country's leadership—reacted to the destruction and murder of 9/11. These pages will take you into the moments of those first days, months and, finally, years that raised questions such as: What is the government’s role in our lives? Are we choosing the right people for leadership? Do traditional American values, ideals, democracy and morality still apply in America today?

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Jodi Graber Pratt, a grandchild of immigrants, raised in a working class household, was taught early to be proud—and grateful—to be an American. Beginning as a bank teller trainee, Jodi built a 45+year career in financial services, earning BS and MBA degrees in management and eventually building an independent consulting practice specializing in bank operations and financial fraud management.