Yesterday, April 15, 2013, something evil happened in Boston, Massachusetts. As thousands of spectators looked on, runners steadily crossed the finish line in the 26.2 mile Boston Marathon. What an accomplishment! I can’t imagine how finishing something so challenging and rigorous would feel! So, as these people were celebrating reaching HUGE goals and realizing their dreams, 2 bombs went off in the crowd. As of right now, 3 people have died and almost 200 have been injured. We see pictures of massive bloodshed, people frantically trying to get away from the scene, and chaos at every turn.
What we also see pictures of are people running TOWARDS the chaos…just regular people, reacting to this horrific act of violence and cowardice with courage and disregard for their own safety. We’ve heard stories of people using parts of their own clothing as tourniquets for the injured, people holding others up who were too injured to hold themselves up, and others comforting and soothing perfect strangers in the midst of these horrific conditions.
Why am I telling you all this? Well, because now that we have a son, I look at things like this through different eyes. While Sammy has no idea what the Boston Marathon is or what a bomb is, he does know that we, his parents, are the two people in this world that are supremely responsible for his well being and his exposure to evil things in the world. How will we handle it when he is old enough to take in and understand the evil things that people have the capability to do to each other?
What I have made the decision to do in the last 24 hours is to teach him that yes, there are people in the world that think they have some good reason to hurt other people, but there are many, many MORE people that have the capability to help, give, care for, and nurture other people. That is what we will focus on. We won’t focus on the evil acts, but the superhuman ability that humankind has to close ranks and hold each other up.
While the media shows the explosion videos over and over, and while they interview traumatized witnesses and analyze their words, we will be talking about the people that took care of each other…even after running 26.2 miles! THAT is the remarkable part of this tragic occurrence and that is what we will focus on with our sweet Sammy. His pure, innocent little mind doesn’t need to be littered with incessant reliving of the evil, but with the beauty that humanity is capable of. That’s the best I can do with this horrific tragedy. Our hearts go out to all those who have been touched by this, and we hold each one of you up with our positive energy.
Heather says
Beautifully written! And I agree that you are on the right track with how you plan to handle these things in the future with Sammy! Love you 3!!!
annie says
Thanks for the love and support, Heather! It’s a rough world out there!!!
Celeste Palmer says
you both do a beautiful job of being thoughtful and caring parents leading meaningful lives – actions speak.. Love my girls- the moms to these wonderful grandkids! Hugs to all!
annie says
Thank you so much, Celeste! Doin our best so far!!!
Marla says
Bravo, Annie….that’s the hardest part of parenting – trying to shield your babies from the evil in the world – trying to protect them from “bad people” who want to do bad things to kids – and worrying about them when they aren’t in your line of sight.
You and Matt will no doubt do a great job of keeping Sammy safe….and it’s a rough ride sometimes when things like this happen – and they do happen with much greater frequency unfortunately these days – but how you handle it will determine how strong he becomes and he WILL believe in GOOD when you are resolved to teach him that and make it his world view.
hugs as always
annie says
Thank you so much, Marla! Yes…I think that it all boils down to teaching him the best we can to make good decisions and protect himself when we can’t do it for him. No matter what, there will always be bad things out there but he’ll always know that he has a warm, safe place to come home to! Cheers and hugs right back atcha!!! 😉
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