April 15, 2013: An Untold Marathon Story

A change of blog. That is pretty much today's topic. I wrote a blog. And then I deleted it. When I wrote it, I was feeling lighthearted and the theme was very whimsical. I later deleted it with a heavy heart.

Yesterday a friend finished his first marathon. This mighty accomplishment was performed in Rotterdam, Netherlands. His feat brought back fond memories for me. I ran my one-and-only marathon in Chicago, many years back. The feelings that inspired my original blog were that of persistence, friendship, achievement, and a little bit of humor along the way. That's what the life of a runner is all about.

Mid-afternoon today, life changed for all of us. It took a very shocking turn for those unfortunate participants, assistants, and onlookers at the Boston Marathon. The tragic events in Boston went viral as I was searching my hard drive for a marathon picture for my original post. With disbelief, I tried to piece together how something so senseless could possibly have happened.

It is now hours later and the extent of the injuries is shocking. What should have been a special day for many has turned into utter horror. I have deleted my marathon story. It seems so irrelevant now. I can't even fathom the thought of a potential bomb on my mind during my run. The days of carefree living seem to be slipping away into the hands of those filled with hate.

No whimsical story today. With a heavy heart, I have to say I'm pretty much speechless at this point. Many prayers to the innocent victims in Boston.