I am not a runner, but I was in Boston on April 15, 2013. I, along with my family, made the trip to cheer on my brother, who is a phenomenal runner, in my very biased opinion, as he ran the Boston Marathon. The long weekend was full of fun, laughter and taking in all that Boston had to offer. We ate fabulous Italian food in the North End, sampled beer at the Sam Adams Brewery, visited the iconic Fenway Park, and watched street performers at Quincy Market.
Then, on the morning of April 15th, while my brother was preparing to run the marathon, we lined the streets of Boston to cheer on the runners. We stood shoulder to shoulder and clapped, whistled, and cheered for thousands of men and women we did not know, and one that we did. The enthusiasm was infectious. Together, the crowd worked to buoy the spirits of these runners, so full of endurance and determination. While not personally connected we all fed off each other. We cheered for the troops that walked the course in fatigues and boots, carrying full backpacks, we cheered for the wheelchair and hand bicycle participants. We cheered as the elite runners sped past, and we will cheer again.
The beautiful day, and hard work of over 27,000 runners and over 500,000 spectators, was soon interrupted when bombs were set off near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Luckily, my brother is a fast runner, finishing the marathon in just under 3 hours. By 2:50pm, when the first bomb went off, our family was accounted for. We had taken an extremely crowded train to the equally as crowded family meeting area and were all within about 3 blocks of the bomb site. It was quite a while before we discovered the severity of the situation, however, it became immediately clear, by the number of emergency vehicles, sirens and helicopter hovering overhead that something larger than an industrial accident or car crash had occurred.
As word of the disaster filtered through the crowd we turned to our smart-phones for more information. We were unable to make calls, but the internet connection was still available, it wasn’t until a few hours later that we learned that cell phone service had been shut down, as a precautionary measure throughout Boston. It was through social media that we were able to quickly get a message out to friends and family that we were safe. We then set off on foot across town to the Omni Parker House hotel, where my brother was staying for the weekend. When we arrived at the Omni we were met in the lobby by the wonderful staff of the hotel. A hospitality room, stocked with tables, chairs, water, bagels and a large screen TV was set up for marathoners and their families. The Omni did a superb job of relaying the little bit of information they received. A few hours later we decided to set off again on foot in search of dinner. The streets were eerily quiet, except for the very strong police presence. By late evening we were able to take the train back to the hotel we were staying in just outside the city.
A long day had come to an end.
I’ve been asked many times in the few short days since about my thoughts on the safety of travel in light of the bombings. I learned a lot that cool spring day, much of it from the runners themselves who throughout their training and 26.2 grueling miles exhibited such determination and endurance. I know this doesn’t come as a shock to many of you that of course I will continue to travel. In fact, just this evening my family was discussing a return trip to Boston. I realize that the world we live in is increasingly becoming a hotbed for destruction and violence. However, I also deeply believe that we cannot let these acts of terror allow us to bury our heads in the sand, that is what “they” (whomever, they are) would like the most. I read recently that travel changes people, and people change the world. I know that the world needs change, it needs compassion instead of complacency, it needs much more than taking a vacation can provide. But, if in some small way I can expose my daughter to a world where people work together and cheer people along that they don’t even know, if I can show her our similarities and kindness there is hope, and that is why we will not only continue to travel, but return to Boston as well.
***Update – My family did return to Boston the following year for the Marathon. Brian even raised $2,650 for the victims from the 2013 bombing. Unfortunately 9 days before the race he was running a 5k charity run to raise money for foster children in Washington DC. He won that race and was playing with the kids at the finish. He stepped off a curb and fractured his ankle. He was in a cast for a few days but was able to find an orthopedic doctor that told him he wouldn’t do additional damage if he ran the marathon, but “it’s going to hurt like hell.” He did run on his broken ankle, he had to stop a few times and walk a good bit, but he finished. His time of 3 hours and 24 minutes was not quick enough for him to qualify for the 2015 Boston Marathon. You can read about his fundraiser here: https://www.crowdrise.com/back-2-backboston26-2