ljg
Well-Known Member
Dear Friends,
If any of you are finding yourselves in heightened state of alert or fear of what you're continually viewing on the news coverage of Boston and now maybe perhaps West, TX, or the multitude of other things that we're told to be afraid of, I hope you'll allow me to urge you NOT to be, and to share this story from Monday's events at the marathon. I also hope to not come off at all as selfish or braggy as that isn't my intent at all, but the story was written about my own family experience and Boston. As an eyewitness to the finish line bombings, and almost directly across the street from bomb #2 (we were standing in front of Lord & Taylor on Boylston, second row of spectators behind the railing), I can tell you without hesitation that anytime innocent people are murdered and maimed it is a senseless tragedy. The experience was scary to go through during the time, but I choose not be afraid at all of the aftermath. The news outlets are doing an extraordinarily good job of ratings-grabbing by posting videos and photos of sinister gore (growing interest by promulgating FEAR), but they are doing an astoundingly poor job of covering the goodness and basic humanity of EVERYONE that started at 2:51pm on Monday and continues on right now.
Story background:
My father passed away on Apr 03, 2013, after waiting years for a liver transplant that was never to come. His liver disease was caused through no fault of his own, and he endured absolutely brutal pain for quite awhile before he passed (no working liver means pain management medications are very infrequent and normally only available in minute doses). After his diagnosis, he had refused a living family donor stubbornly, on the grounds that the one who donates would take a quality of life hit, and he wouldn't risk it. I'm grateful he is out of pain and on to something better, but my Dad's legacy is NOT his death, it is his life. He was a minister in the United Methodist Church for 45 years. While he gave pretty excellent sermons, and displayed a ridiculously large intellect and passion for his work, his legacy was formed by standing strong with people in the absolute worst of circumstances, which is exactly what I saw in Boston.
Whoever you were and whatever you were facing, my Dad was there for you - death, divorce, suicide, at least one prevented suicide, bankruptcy, hunger, poverty, illness - *whatever* - he was your guy if you needed someone. He became fairly well-known for that. My dad was even personally sued one time for $5,000,000.00, after standing alone and refusing to sell a home for the elderly (he sat on the board of the home) to a buyer that he learned was planning to push all the residents out - he won the case after 6 years. You may be getting the idea, he was a good guy. He continued to work, even in agonizing pain up until December 31st, 2012, because he loved serving others.
Fast forward to April 2013 and to Boston -
My sister Kimberly is an avid long-distance runner, it is her thing. She raised thousands of dollars to run Boston this year for the American Liver Foundation's Run for Research Marathon Team. She had planned last fall to do it in honor of my Dad, who was ill but very much in the hunt for a transplant last fall. My Dad was humbled to be recognized in such a selfless way. Kimberly was devastated at the end of March when it was clear that Dad was leaving us, and had totally abandoned her training regimen in the midst of her grief. On the morning he died, Kimberly wore her Boston Marathon jacket, and promised him she would run, and finish the marathon to occur in a week and a half - only she would now be doing it in his memory. I don't know where she found the fortitude to do that as my own tank was empty at the time, but she is a remarkable person too. We all decided that we were going to be at the finish line on April 15th.
You know what happened then. But what is widely under-reported is the goodness that surrounds this tragedy. First responders running directly into the bomb blasts, seconds after it happened. Partial amputations, CPR, makeshift blood tourniquets and random people carrying wounded into ambulances. How about the marathoners who were close to finishing at 2:50pm, crossed the finish line after the bombings and continued to run another 2 miles directly to Tufts or Mass General to donate blood? Just amazing. The everyday people of Boston opened their doors, literally, and came out strong in a show of humanity. They were there for anybody for whatever they needed, and in that time it reminded me quite a lot of my Dad.
I would urge anyone who is reading this to stay strong; don't be afraid of senseless cowards on the run. Keep living life, and if you do that this evil that exists in our world with it's warped agenda LOSES. I am not changing a thing. I will be at the finish line in Boston next year to watch my sister complete the marathon in honor of my Father - in fact, I hope I will be able to make an annual tradition out of it. I'm not built to run marathons myself, but all of us are built to help one another in our time of need. We are given abilities that we should put to good use to do something positive. I very much regard my experience from Monday as NOT that of someone victimized, but as a fortunate bystander who received the goodness of countless strangers. I continually think of those who were actually victims (particularly 8-year old Martin), and I believe the best way I can honor them is by living life in the manner that all of us gathered there were doing at 2:49pm on Monday.
Anyway, here is the story. Thank you for reading:
http://westmichiganconference.org/news/detail/2916
Celebrate Life,
Jordan Grauer (ljg)
If any of you are finding yourselves in heightened state of alert or fear of what you're continually viewing on the news coverage of Boston and now maybe perhaps West, TX, or the multitude of other things that we're told to be afraid of, I hope you'll allow me to urge you NOT to be, and to share this story from Monday's events at the marathon. I also hope to not come off at all as selfish or braggy as that isn't my intent at all, but the story was written about my own family experience and Boston. As an eyewitness to the finish line bombings, and almost directly across the street from bomb #2 (we were standing in front of Lord & Taylor on Boylston, second row of spectators behind the railing), I can tell you without hesitation that anytime innocent people are murdered and maimed it is a senseless tragedy. The experience was scary to go through during the time, but I choose not be afraid at all of the aftermath. The news outlets are doing an extraordinarily good job of ratings-grabbing by posting videos and photos of sinister gore (growing interest by promulgating FEAR), but they are doing an astoundingly poor job of covering the goodness and basic humanity of EVERYONE that started at 2:51pm on Monday and continues on right now.
Story background:
My father passed away on Apr 03, 2013, after waiting years for a liver transplant that was never to come. His liver disease was caused through no fault of his own, and he endured absolutely brutal pain for quite awhile before he passed (no working liver means pain management medications are very infrequent and normally only available in minute doses). After his diagnosis, he had refused a living family donor stubbornly, on the grounds that the one who donates would take a quality of life hit, and he wouldn't risk it. I'm grateful he is out of pain and on to something better, but my Dad's legacy is NOT his death, it is his life. He was a minister in the United Methodist Church for 45 years. While he gave pretty excellent sermons, and displayed a ridiculously large intellect and passion for his work, his legacy was formed by standing strong with people in the absolute worst of circumstances, which is exactly what I saw in Boston.
Whoever you were and whatever you were facing, my Dad was there for you - death, divorce, suicide, at least one prevented suicide, bankruptcy, hunger, poverty, illness - *whatever* - he was your guy if you needed someone. He became fairly well-known for that. My dad was even personally sued one time for $5,000,000.00, after standing alone and refusing to sell a home for the elderly (he sat on the board of the home) to a buyer that he learned was planning to push all the residents out - he won the case after 6 years. You may be getting the idea, he was a good guy. He continued to work, even in agonizing pain up until December 31st, 2012, because he loved serving others.
Fast forward to April 2013 and to Boston -
My sister Kimberly is an avid long-distance runner, it is her thing. She raised thousands of dollars to run Boston this year for the American Liver Foundation's Run for Research Marathon Team. She had planned last fall to do it in honor of my Dad, who was ill but very much in the hunt for a transplant last fall. My Dad was humbled to be recognized in such a selfless way. Kimberly was devastated at the end of March when it was clear that Dad was leaving us, and had totally abandoned her training regimen in the midst of her grief. On the morning he died, Kimberly wore her Boston Marathon jacket, and promised him she would run, and finish the marathon to occur in a week and a half - only she would now be doing it in his memory. I don't know where she found the fortitude to do that as my own tank was empty at the time, but she is a remarkable person too. We all decided that we were going to be at the finish line on April 15th.
You know what happened then. But what is widely under-reported is the goodness that surrounds this tragedy. First responders running directly into the bomb blasts, seconds after it happened. Partial amputations, CPR, makeshift blood tourniquets and random people carrying wounded into ambulances. How about the marathoners who were close to finishing at 2:50pm, crossed the finish line after the bombings and continued to run another 2 miles directly to Tufts or Mass General to donate blood? Just amazing. The everyday people of Boston opened their doors, literally, and came out strong in a show of humanity. They were there for anybody for whatever they needed, and in that time it reminded me quite a lot of my Dad.
I would urge anyone who is reading this to stay strong; don't be afraid of senseless cowards on the run. Keep living life, and if you do that this evil that exists in our world with it's warped agenda LOSES. I am not changing a thing. I will be at the finish line in Boston next year to watch my sister complete the marathon in honor of my Father - in fact, I hope I will be able to make an annual tradition out of it. I'm not built to run marathons myself, but all of us are built to help one another in our time of need. We are given abilities that we should put to good use to do something positive. I very much regard my experience from Monday as NOT that of someone victimized, but as a fortunate bystander who received the goodness of countless strangers. I continually think of those who were actually victims (particularly 8-year old Martin), and I believe the best way I can honor them is by living life in the manner that all of us gathered there were doing at 2:49pm on Monday.
Anyway, here is the story. Thank you for reading:
http://westmichiganconference.org/news/detail/2916
Celebrate Life,
Jordan Grauer (ljg)
