There's something special about Boston. It has this magical quality that I cannot help but get wrapped up in each time I think about it or each time I travel there. I remember as a child, it was special to go to Boston. It was a big deal, we didn't go every weekend, but when we went, it was celebratory. As a child, I'd go to the North End with my grandmother, my mom, my uncles, and my sister. We'd eat pizza at Bova's, buy cold cuts at the Salumeria, buy chocolate at Dairy Fresh Candy, and buy wine at Martignetti's. Going to Fanueil Hall was always special too. We'd go to concerts at Boston Garden like when my dad took our whole family to see Pavarotti. One time, my dad won a shoot to win contest where he could win money if he made a basket at half court at half time during a Celtics Game. He didn't win, but how I loved going to the game, and how I loved practicing with him before. Fenway Park--- what more can I say. We love our Red Sox whether they win or they lose. Fenway may be small in comparison to so many other baseball parks, but it is full of heart and full of character just like the city of Boston, just like it's people.
When I grew older, I went to college in my favorite city attending Northeastern University as a Journalism student. I learned so much about Journalism, writing, and current events. The city helped me to grow up, it helped me to mature, to see things from a different perspective. My love for my major, my love for my University, my love for the city of Boston are part of why I write this blog today. I started at NU in September of 2001, 9.11 happened a couple of weeks later. It was all we discussed that semester, all we discussed my freshman year of college. It was hard to think about it for that long, talk about it for that long, and write about it for that long. I remember feeling overwhelmed, every once and a while when I thought about 9.11, I couldn't breathe. It was scary to think I would be growing up in a world like this. It made me think about why I wanted to write in the first place. I wanted the public to know the truth about what was going on in our world. I wanted justice for whatever there should be justice for. I wanted people to be able to live their lives and know that I would always keep them informed of what was going on out there. I would tell them stories that would make them think, feel, and act--- I would tell the stories that others were too scared to tell. I would instill confidence, responsibility, and awareness.
As for the Boston Marathon, well, what can I say? I grew up in Wellesley, also known as, the half way point of the race. We'd go every year, we'd cheer, we'd watch the runners. Then we would walk home to my grandmother's house and try to see if we had seen the winner in person.
What happened this past Monday when the Marathon Bombings took place initially scared me, though, it wasn't out of the ordinary because it seems like these acts, although heinous, are becoming more common place. After it scared me, it made me sad. I cried for the victims, I cried for the city, I cried for people, the human race, and I cried for myself. After I was done being sad, my sadness turned to anger. What kind of person would do something like this? Why do people somehow think that killing people could possibly make them important? Why would they think that sacrificing their own lives would prove a point? And what point are they trying to prove?
Wanting to make others fear you, fear your kind, that's insecurity. Fear is about close mindedness. It's about not having enough scope, not having had enough experiences in your own life. Fear is not being able to see what's really there, it's irrationality, and it's not accepting. In a lot of ways, fear is the opposite of love.
To watch on the TV the reactions of people during the bombing, it was proof to me that there are good people in our world. To every person who comforted, volunteered, saved, operated on, cared for-- you're what we're all about. You're what makes our community, city, state, and country special. You're courageous, brave, and inspiring. Your selflessness astounds me; I often wonder, how are you able to be that brave in that moment? I think it's because there isn't time to be anything else.
Bostonians have this rep for being the best sports fans in the world. We love our teams-- Red Sox, Patriots, Bruins, and Celtics. We've been through lots of ups and downs with all these teams, and despite it, we stick with them. We stick with them cause they're our teams at the end of the day. That's the thing about Bostonians, we're loyal to a fault, we'll love no matter what, we're tough, we've got grit, real spirit, and we won't give up on anything. We're fighters, and when we get knocked down, it makes us rise to the occasion even more. When we finally get up, we're up, and if you get knocked down, we'll help you up too.
Our faith in being tested right now, and it's when our faith is being test that we must believe the most. We must remember that it is in dark times like these that we must think of light. It is in these dark times that we must carry one another. We must share, we must love, and we must fight for what we know is right. Times like these test our endurance, and as the President remarked in his speech today, "We carry on. We race. We strive. We build, and we work, and we love -- and we raise our kids to do the same. And we come together to celebrate life." We must do this, because if we don't, those who committed this cowardly act win. We cannot allow them to win, we need to keep going. We need to push on, we must celebrate the lives of those we lost by continuing to live our own. We must look fear, hate, and cowardice in the face and know that we will triumph because love, friendship, and strength are the answer. That's who we are.
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