On one end, you have a cold calculated person or group of people whose actions abruptly and tragically ended human lives. Frankly, it doesn't matter to me if it was carried out by someone or a group of international or domestic descent - an attack on humanity to me has no color or no country affiliation.
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| Some of the quick responders helping at the scene of the explosions (From CNN.com) |
Which brings me to the other end. The brighter end of humanity. The one where first responders to such tragedies show no hesitation in trying to save the lives of strangers they have never met. Some of these heroes are law enforcement - firefighters, policemen, medical personnel. Some of them just happen to make themselves heroes, lending a hand to someone who may have been in the line of the tragedy. All the while, these folks have no clue if there's more explosions coming - whether it be out of bravery or just acting in the heat of the moment, these people run towards the danger as everyone else is encouraged to run away from it.
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| Former NFLer Joe Andruzzi helps an injured woman (Getty Images) |
To watch the scene that took place after the explosion, with medics using wheelchairs to hurry people who were near the explosion, with people who were helping to carry those who may not have been able to walk anymore, it really does show how the worst brings out the best in many people.
The best stories I've read as it relates to the tragedy and how our faith in humanity can be restored in the same instant we think it disappeared:
- As the marathon abruptly ended with the explosions, I caught a story of marathon runners who kept running past the finish line towards a local hospital to donate their blood. From what I heard, enough blood was donated to help those who were affected by the tragedy.
- Those marathoners who may not be able to leave the city at this time have been offered places to crash by local Boston residents. In the face of hardship, Boston is lending its helping hand to those whose plans of leaving after the marathon may have been affected.
- Joe Andruzzi, a former New England Patriot lineman whose family knows a little about being first in line of an American tragedy (his three brothers - all firefighters - were first responders on 9/11), was near the finish line of the marathon as he and his cancer research foundation were hosting a fundraising party when the explosions hit. Acting as his brothers would, Joe was seen helping many who were affected by the blasts, as seen in the picture above.
If you dig deeper, there's plenty of stories just like this. Stories that show you how a nation of 300 million can feel like a town of 1200, where everyone feels like family if only for a moment.
My Growing Faith in Humanity
Before today, I've learned of some of the generosity of mankind in the past couple weeks on a personal level. When signing up for a race called the Warrior Dash, the sign-up process asked if I would like to race and raise money on behalf of St. Jude. Yes, yes I will do this, I decided. My company, as charitable as they come, has done something for me that no other place of employment has ever done - it has opened my eyes to the effects that charity and charitable work can do for a person/community.
Not only will I do it, I will do it on behalf of my cousin Marilyn, who passed away before even reaching double digits in age, dying months after her 8th birthday in 1989. I was only 6 at the time, but the effects of her death have affected my extended family in ways I would never want to imagine. Even though she didn't use St. Jude, it is children's hospitals that help kids like my cousin (and even my brother, who had hip issues as a kid and had to wear leg braces for many years) and make it possible for families to survive financially without having to worry about the extensive hospital bills that may come from extended stays.
In my fundraising efforts for St. Jude, I have been even more amazed. The generosity of people from all walks of my life has been nothing short of spectacular: family, friends, co-workers, even complete strangers who may know a family member of mine who promoted my charitable efforts. All of these groups of people have done way more than I've expected, donated much more than I ever planned (which has made me increase my ambitious fundraising goal to $1,000).
Before the tragedy, I already knew of this giving spirit. I could say it's because I have a great group of people around me, perhaps greater than anyone else may have - and I wouldn't argue with you. All of those groups of people in my life have a special place in my heart, not only for their donations but who they are as people.
Keep on Running
On days like this, it's easy for us to question the tragedies that happen. In many cases, we never get straight answers. In all cases, we never get good answers.
But as time has shown, at least in my recent memory, humanity also rises in these tragedies. No matter what the tragedy (whether it be what happened in Boston or New York in 2001 or many other countless examples of tragedies), the best of humanity shows its face.
When next year's Boston Marathon comes around, I expect the race to go off without a hitch. I also expect people to run in dedication of what happened in 2013. It will be tough for many people to run the race with the explosions in their minds.
But we are a resilient humanity. 9/11 didn't scare most of us from ever flying again, nor should these explosions scare marathoners from ever running the race again.
We must keep on running.
