Thoughts through tragedy

For my readers who don't know me on a personal level, I live in the Boston area--several miles from the Monday attack. If you don't live in Boston or have never lived in Boston, you don't know how big of a deal Marathon Monday is. It is a huge day for the Boston community and has been for years. I haven't had the privilege of being able to watch it live yet. Here's why:

1. My first Marathon Monday was shortly after I had moved to the area. I had no clue what a big deal it was (learned quickly thereafter from several Bostonians).
2. On my second Marathon Monday, I had to work and fight the absurd traffic. That taught me to take the day off to avoid traffic and to go watch it live.
3. This was my third Marathon Monday. My plan was to go watch it in the city with the manfriend, but he ended up having to go to work. So I decided it was better for me to watch it from home rather than to brave the city alone. My gut led me in the right direction :(

No word can truly describe the range of emotions around what happened on Monday. Now, there will forever be a before and after for Boston--before April 15th and after April 15th...The people who were there experienced unnecessary physical AND emotional damage from which they will never be able to fully recover. To those who lost someone dear to you, my heart goes out to you. To those whose life is intact, but body is not, I cannot imagine what you are going through. Some of my fellow dancers can attest to this sentiment: losing a leg is one of the worst things that can happen. Yes there are worse things, but when you are a dancer...I mean a dancer down to your soul...you come alive when you dance. For that to be taken away is unimaginable.

The important thing, folks, is that we all have to mourn. Mourn for those who have lost their lives. Mourn for those who have lost limbs. Mourn for ourselves. Mourn for our city. Mourn for a nation. Mourn for those who have lost faith in humanity. Let's drown the evil with the good.

I feel so much sorrow for all those affected: Those of us who are part of the city. Those of us who were at work. Those of us who were at home. Those of us who were there and witnessed the chaos and sadness. The hero inside all of us comes out the most during tragedy. There were heroes in the crowd that day. Normal people who ran toward the blast rather than away from it. I sure hope I would be one of those heroes: someone whose instinct is to help rather than to run away. Think if we could channel the courage and strength we feel during an event like this and use it on a daily basis to better this world. Think of the differences that would be made! We'll no longer be waiting on the world to change...we would be changing it!

This is the first attack since the tragic event that changed our modern history--9/11. Our lives changed that day. We witnessed the loss of thousands of innocent lives. We witnessed hatred develop. We witnessed tragedy. But New York is a strong city. We came together as a nation, forgot about politics, and rallied our efforts to bring that strong city back to its feet. Boston will do the same.

On April 14, 2014, I plan to run that marathon. Why? 

Because some people will never get the chance to walk or run or dance again. I'm running it for them. I'm running it for those whose lives were cut short. I'm running it for Boston.

I'm going to leave you with something I posted on my Facebook the other day. Stay strong Boston--for you, for our city, and for those who lost so much on that day.

"It's really hard to function normally knowing that so many people were brutally harmed for no reason. Less than 24 hours ago so many people thought they would get to watch an inspirational event and then wake up to go to work the next day...just like us. That didn't happen. Someone decided they had the right to change that path for other people. Some people will never live their lives the same way... due to the horrendous injuries they endured. The reality and severity of the situation is so sad and so disheartening. Times like this should remind us just how lucky we are to have 1 MORE DAY, just how lucky we are to be HEALTHY, Just how lucky we are to be able to WALK, and just how lucky we are to be able to GO TO WORK. For some people, that was all taken away from them in a matter of seconds. And the same thing could happen to any of us at any moment. So take this time to mourn for those who lost so much, to provide aid to those who need it, and to cherish the time we have with those we love. I love you, friends...from the bottom of my heart and cherish each of you dearly."