BOSTON YOU'RE MY HOME!
I am born and raised in Hopkinton, spent my younger years at my Uncle's house along Rte. 135/Waverly Street in Framingham where we showered the runners on hot days with sprays of the hose. We looked through crowds of people for my friend's Dad who at the time was a regular runner. We sat in the big gym in our elementary school as the worlds TOP runners came in to speak to us as they arrived in town, standing proudly by their Kenyan flags, for example. It was just "Marathon Monday." As a member of the Booster's Club in town, Dad helped at the Start every year and made friends with the Marathon Committee; he even drove a pace car for the 100th running. I will never forget that year ~ the 100th Marathon was the first time ever where there was some darkness and uncertainty hanging over the day. Due to the significant anniversary of the event, there had been bomb threats made against the pipeline that ran through town; security was heightened - police, guys in fatigues; I recall more than the "usual" helicopters being flown above the town common. As I got older, I stayed in Hopkinton with my friends and we spent the day in town, at the START. (Usually getting into trouble the night before...) Yes, it was "Patriot's Day" and a day off from school but to us it was always "Marathon Monday" ~ it's still what I call it today at almost 32. It is a celebratory day, a day of pride for my hometown and our state capital, Boston.
The last few Marathon Monday's haven't been too exciting for me, either working for EMC in previous years or "working" at home with the kids more recently. But still, it was always "Marathon Monday" ~ where I remembered my roots and flicked on the TV at least a few times to see what was going on. Checked the pictures online of my friends who were hitting the bars at the finish line in the city. And now 17 years later...
Yesterday seemed like a normal, nice Marathon - perfect weather. I dozed off and when I woke up the tune had changed to "BREAKING NEWS: EXPLOSION AT BOSTON MARATHON FINISH LINE." What? Panic set in immediately. I have so many friends that now instead of spending time at the Start in Hopkinton have moved onto the end of the route and spent more recent years in Boston towards the finish line. PANIC. PANIC. PANIC. We both have family living there - who have their own friends in the area; my friend was with her sister and mother-in-law in/around the grandstands the news kept speaking of yesterday, waiting for their sister-in-law to cross.....as the first bomb, then the second bomb went off. At the time, I didn't know where she was as all cell reception went down; but I finally got ahold of her hubby to confirm they were all OK. When I talked to her she confirmed they were right near those grandstands constantly being shown/talked about on TV and she saw/heard the bombs DIRECTLY across from them and RAN. An old childhood friend was in town from Chicago and I knew via Facebook she was trying to get out of the city with her friends, but I had no way of getting ahold of her or trying to get to her and her friends. I tried my cousins, both "Bostonites" now. Anyone and everyone I could think of I frantically went through my phone for about 2 hours trying to make sure everyone was accounted for. As as of now, all is OK....For those immediate to me that is, but NOT for my city, my home, the City of Champions.
Being a Bostonian, I feel confident in saying that whoever these people are, they picked the wrong city to mess with. Boston is tough, Boston fights, Boston wins. I hope they live in terror at every breathing moment that "we" as a city are on their tails, and "we" will find them, and "we" will take them down.
A day characterized by community, worldliness, friendliness; a day that needs no words to describe it for those of us that have lived it; that day has been compromised. But tragedy and terror breeds strength, togetherness, an outpouring of love, and the desire to help. We saw coverage of police and Marathon volunteers tearing down guard rails, fences, any and all barriers that were in the way of reaching those injured on the sidewalk before the second bomb went off. That is heroism. In the midst of tragedy, goodness does and will always prevail.
Despite this tragedy, try to focus on the good - the heroic people who dove right in to help without hesitation; the doctors and nurses who have been working diligently to save lives; be thankful for all the lives that were spared and that things weren't, god forbid, worse; be thankful for our police & firemen, the National Guard, and every single person who has been in Boston or in the hospitals helping those in need. Try to think of all that goodness at such a dark moment. It is dark, wrong, it is dispicable and disgusting, and I hope with all of my heart "we" (as the City of Boston) find this person and he or they are brought to true justice - Boston style.
Although this wonderful Marathon Monday tradition will be stained with blood for years to come, we will fight, we will find this person/people, and we as a city will prevail. And next year, the year after, the year after...we will remember and pray, and grow stronger. That's just what Boston does, baby. We are fighters!
~E
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