Getting Back to Routine, Americans Send Signal to Terrorists

A T L A N T A, Sept. 18 -- Across the country Monday, there was the sound of determination as Americans got back to work — to the office, to the shop, off to school — with a desire not to ignore the tragedy of last Tuesday’s terrorist attacks, but to transcend it.

“If people don’t get back to business, the terrorists are going to win, ” a construction worker called out from an Atlanta site, working as he said it.

In downtown Atlanta, and throughout the nation, people set out to resume the routine of daily life, determined to send a signal to terrorists. “To send the message that you have not won, “ said Molly Smith, walking her daughter Annie to a school bus stop. Matt Carter, on the job at his Dallas electric company, echoed the sentiment. “By getting back to work we are showing our strong sense of resolve.”

“That’s the only thing I can do right now,” said Emily Bell, a bank consultant who, like many, feels the need to do something. “If that’s the only thing I can do, then that’s what I will do.”

‘We Can’t Just Go Hide’

Many Americans, like college student James Chandler, say, though, they are still numb from the tragedy. “You really just walk around,” he shakes his head, looking up at the Atlanta skyline as a plane passes overhead, “and you really don’t know.”

But David Slezak says he worked to shake off the temptation to give in to despair. “We can’t just go hide somewhere.”

“No,” adds Tommy Daniels, “As an American, I just can’t do it. That’s not what our country is built on. That’s why I went to work the next day, and I will continue to go to work.”

There were signs of Americans’ resolve on the job everywhere. Lucy Anne Bancroft, a nurse practitioner in Atlanta, walked briskly to work with a flag waving from her backpack. She says she has noticed that, in addition to the resolve of Americans, she has seen a great deal of patience and empathy.