Like me, I’m sure you were shocked and saddened to hear of the tragic turn of events at today’s Boston Marathon.
I’d planned to tell you all about the “VIPink Party” I attended Saturday night (I have the post all loaded in and ready to go).
Needless to say, all of that seems pretty frivolous now, when some of the Marathon runners and attendees are hanging on to life by a thread. Others made it out intact, but I’m sure the lives of those in attendance are now turned upside down.
I can’t help but think of the joy and laughter I experienced at Saturday’s event. I enjoyed the company I was with, and I loved being out and about. There’s something about events like the Marathon, concerts, festivals, shows, sporting events, movies and even fundraising dinners that make us happy.
We put on the glitz – or good walking shoes! – and set out to have a good time with friends and family. We don’t approach these events with fear; no, it’s the exact opposite. Many of the people who ran the Marathon had trained for months. Being there was a milestone for many; for some, an event to cross off on their bucket lists.
We don’t expect our events to end in tragedy. No, we expect to Facebook it, Tweet it, commemorate it with pictures, or even blog about it. We plan to place these events in our categories of “good times,” and never expect them to become remembrances of unspeakable horror and fear.
My heartfelt condolences, prayers, and sympathy go out to the families of all who were affected. My hope is that one day; someday, they may again experience good times.
Join in the Fray: When was the last occasion you had a “good time?”
I’m blogging every day in the month of April in Blogher’s NaBloPoMo Challenge. Thanks for reading, and feel free to comment!
Copyright © 2013 Michelle Matthews Calloway, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™, All rights reserved.
TheSwirlWorld says
April 16, 2013 at 9:52 PMKarla,
Congrats on your anniversary! Such a wonderful milestone for you and your husband, and what a blessing to spend time with your Mother. Joy such as that pales and is overshadowed in the light of tragic circumstances like what happened at the Boston Marathon. I’m distressed to no end to see the mean, hateful spitefulness of people come out at times like these. How brave of you and your husband to defend that woman and her child – to me, THAT is the kind of spirit and action that should be on display. Instead, as you stated, we get armchair crime analysts, conspiracy theorists, and flat out hate/fear mongers in full tilt (and hiding behind computer screens and keyboards, of course).
I alternate between feeling profoundly sad and profoundly angry. ~Le sigh.
Karla says
April 16, 2013 at 6:53 AMGood post, Michelle! This past weekend, I was in Atlanta with my husband, celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary. We met my mother there and I was able to attend a knitting convention as well as sample the things Atlanta had to offer. I was going to put the photos on FB and gush about it but, like you, I felt it would be frivolous. I am thankful to have 23 years with my husband and look forward to more.
You know what really bothers me? The horrific event, or course, but also what happens afterward. People want to assign blame instead of being patient and letting law enforcement do their jobs (which they will do with expert efficiency). They want to speculate and be “armchair” cops. For a day or two, people will come together but then, it will be business as usual. I’m sorry to be cynical but I saw this during 9/11; I was in DC when the Pentagon was hit. I lived in an actual city with a disaster of unimaginable proportions, wondering if friends were dead or alive. As difficult as that was for me (being locked down, no communications with anyone, standing at the Anacostia River, looking down at the Pentagon as it burned), I can’t begin to imagine how difficult it was for those who lost a family member. In the next few weeks, the way people acted after hugging each other and crying in the days before was terrible. Anyone with light to medium brown skin and dark hair was subject to epithets and accusations, not to mention some harassment or even arrest after being falsely accused. I encountered some WM selling wood in my neighborhood (which was very diverse, filled with diplomatic personnel) verbally attacking a Muslim woman and her child. I was in uniform then and stood in front of her, confronting their racism. It was getting ugly when my husband drove up, also in uniform, stood with me while I called the police. Those were nasty days.
I wish, when something like this kind of tragedy happens, that people would re-examine their lives and I mean everyone from world leaders on down the line. Unfortunately, that will not happen. We’ll cry as a nation, get condolences from around the world and when the wall-to-wall coverage in the news dies down, we’ll move on until the perps are caught. The blame game will continue, people will get mean again, the country will still be divided and so it goes.
Don says
April 15, 2013 at 11:22 PMWhat more can one say on something like this, Michelle? It’s sad, yes, I agree. But I’m already hearing rumblings that some folks are trying to blame the President for this. At times like that, I sometimes despair of humanity. Yet we all must keep going on. Get the lesson from this, whatever that might be for each of us, individually and collectively. If we don’t get the lesson, then this kind of thing will keep happening, and keep getting worse, until we do get it. That’s the way of things, and it’s proven out by observation.