Blue Monday

From the writing desk of Christine Mazurk

I had other plans for my blog this week, but that changed Monday when I received frantic calls from friends and family, asking if I was in Boston. "No, why?" I replied, as my brain immediately shifted gears and latched on to the fact that the Boston Marathon was running! They were afraid I was running it.

"What happened?" I asked the first friend who called, she just told me to turn on CNN. Two explosions near the finish line - at the four hour mark, which is when the majority of runners would be finishing.

The harsh reality of evil filled the screen, and my heart hammered. As a runner and Ironman triathlete, I thought this was devastating, the impact surreal. Thousands of people - athletes and spectators, official personnel and volunteers - attend these events, and it makes me sick to think someone found joy in targeting innocent people. An attack that left three dead - one of those an eight year old boy - and left hundreds injured. It's tragic, just tragic.

I thought of my writer friends, many live in the New England area, several are runners or have children who run. How many were there? How many were running? Were they safe?

I wept for the victims whose lives have been permanently altered, for the others who scrambled to find loved ones, not knowing if they were safe. I cried for the rest of the country, because a senseless act of violence instilled fear in us.

We shouldn't be afraid to gather over a shared passion. We shouldn't have to look over our shoulders watching for the next attack. When will it end? When will humanity realize we must get along or the world will implode?

I walked around with a heavy heart for days and then I read a shared post on Facebook, and a little faith was restored. Laura Wellington was 1/2 a mile from the finish when the bombs exploded. Her family was waiting at the finish line, she didn't know if they were safe. After several calls, she reached her husband and learned her family was safe. She cried with relief, just sat down and sobbed. That's when a couple approached her. The woman removed the space tent from her husband's shoulders - he had already finished the race - and wrapped it around Laura. And when the gentleman asked if she was able to finish, she said no. He took the medal from around his neck and gave it to her saying, "You are a finisher in my eyes."

What a grand gesture, one from his heart. There are still good people in the world!

It's been a week of tears, tears of emotion and horror, tears of sorrow and compassion, and then tears of gratitude for the heroes who walk among us. I end this with a silent prayer that the heroes, the acts of goodness, outweigh the evil in this world, so we can embrace the love God intended us to share.

Then the explosion of the fertilizer plant in west Texas occurred ... oh, wow, what was happening? The world was exploding. Yikes!! My heart can't handle this. Can yours? Sending healing prayers to all involved. We love you and pray for your safety and preservation!

Until next time, hugs!