They say most of us have short attention spans thanks to the 24/7 news cycle, texting, Tweeting and smartphones. But not about some things.

One of those things is what we were doing, how we felt, where we were on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. For many it was a life-changer, both on a personal level and as a nation. Things will never be the same. On Monday, we asked readers to give us their 9/11 stories.

We heard from people who were at the Pentagon, the World Trade Center, in Ireland and Afghanistan. And all around the U.S.

We got so many … and so many good, touching and informative comments, we decided to run them all in this space. We thought it was important to preserve them so others, maybe a long time down the road, can see them too. To do that, keep scrolling down.

Meantime, here are what some first responders told us:

• “I was in a meeting with NATO officials when an officer came in and whispered that a plane had crashed into the WTC. Then a second message, second plane. We conferred with the NATO officials put them in touch with their embassies … the sacrifice of police and firefighters and those who perished was deeply moving. A native New Yorker, I lost two high school friends in the WTC and a coworker who was on the plane crashing into the WTC.” — Michael M.
• “I was at Number 6 WTC that morning attending a Customs seminar. I had taken the subway with some other attendees … they opted to take the surface route into #6, the North Tower. I usually went that way to decide if I wanted coffee from the kiosk just at the entrance. … That day I decided against coffee and marveled at the glorious morning pouring through the massive windows of WTC #1. It was 8:20 a.m.” — Gary G.
• “At home in Alexandria I heard the roar of the plane fly low, en route to the Pentagon. Later outside, the ONLY sound was military aircraft conducting combat air patrols overhead. Scary. Life-changing.” — Jane P.
• “Fortunately I don’t know anyone who died or was injured on 9/11. But … 10 years later when my son, on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, was at his combat outpost (COP), Sayed Abad in Afghanistan, the Taliban drove past and near a dining hall struck the base with explosives in a symbolic gesture. My son was not injured; however, nearly 80 U.S. soldiers were (none life-threatening) along with two Afghan civilians that were killed.” — IRS Army Mom
• “I was manager in a walk-in office of the IRS in Oklahoma City. After having lived through the nightmare of 4/19/95 (The Murrah Building bombing) we were all especially nervous and on high alert. After the first plane crash, I will never forget seeing the anxiousness in the eyes of one of my employees … the parallels between 9/11 and 4/19 kept running through my mind all day, especially on the long drive home that morning.” — Beth Braddock
• “It was surreal. I was in my office at HUD HQ when I heard a plane had flown into the World Trade Center. Then another one, then a plane flies into the Pentagon and a plane is headed for DC!

  “While we were ready to help as needed, the office was closed and we were sent home. I drove south over the Potomac past the Pentagon … burning … black smoke … surreal!! I still remember a stationwagon/sport utility vehicle with someone hanging out the back clearly on the way to Arlington Hospital.

  “I moved to Florida a few years later.” — Marc Harris, President, eNARFE Florida Chapter 2364

Lots more. Sad, inspiring. Real. An oral history. Check it out:

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