Prayers for Boston

When I went to work yesterday morning, I was not looking forward to my boring day of proctoring FCAT testing. In fact, for the past couple days I have been doing a lot of feeling sorry for myself. A lot of things have not been going the way that I want them to and I have really been letting it get me down. However, when I left work yesterday afternoon, I was feeling grateful to be alive and unharmed. I realized that the things I was allowing to get me down are not the end of the world. Rather than focusing on the things that aren't going my way everyday, I should be focusing on all the blessings that I have in my live. We never know which day might be our last, or a day that drastically changes our life forever.

As I was sitting in my classroom yesterday getting mad at kids for tapping their pencils, people in Boston were literally running for their lives. I didn't find out about the explosions until after school was out and I was getting ready to drive home. All of a sudden, everything in my life was in perspective.

I am not a runner. I wish I could be. One of my goals has always been to run a 5K, but that is probably where my running skills would end. Running a marathon is something I could never imagine doing. Training for a marathon requires so much strength and dedication physically, mentally, and emotionally. I am absolutely in awe of people who can run marathons. The amount of time and hard work that goes into achieving this personal goal truly astounds me.

I can't stop thinking about everything that these runners put into preparing for the Boston Marathon this year. Some of them have been training for months or even years for this. Some of them had to save up money to travel across the country or half-way around the world. This event is a once in a lifetime opportunity for so many. For those who were able to finish the race, their memory of this glorious accomplishment is tarnished. For those who were unable to finish the race, their dream of completing the Boston Marathon may never happen. It is absolutely heartbreaking.

I hate that an event which should be a celebration of great achievement has now been destroyed by tragic violence. In the wake of such horror, let us not forget that there are still good people in this world. While it only took a small group of people (or maybe even just one) to inflict such pain on so many, don't forget about all those who ran toward the explosion and put their own lives in danger to try and help others. My heart goes out to all those who have been affected by this tragedy. Say a little prayer for the city of Boston, all those involved and their families.