La Feria News

Thoughts on Boston

by Margaret Allen, LFN Staff

As an avid running enthusiast, I have been profoundly affected and saddened by the Boston Marathon bombing. This tragic event has torn our hearts apart, left us raw to the core, and wondering “Why?” Runners by in large are an introspective, supportive and peaceful group. Runners raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for charities and causes each year.

When events of this senseless, horrific nature occur in our lives, we struggle to find words to explain them to our children while trying to comprehend it all ourselves. It is important to provide a safe haven for our children so they can cope with such tragedies. Our reaction is the prime example our children will witness and learn from. We cannot react in fear, but instead respond from a position of strength, resiliency and valor.

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Our courage will provide the muscle required to transcend the tragic circumstances and triumph over terror.
We run for many reasons: for freedom, for family, for health, for fitness, for peace of mind, for sanity, for fun, for solitude, for our sorrows, for our joys, we live to run and run to live. We run for the challenge of raising the bar of our own personal expectations. We are constantly striving against ourselves to reach a higher level of performance which once attained is immediately increased. We boldly face the challenges that many diverse weather conditions place before us. Runners readily adapt, anticipate, and even look forward to such tests of endurance.

The irony is that this single act of terror, while intended to threaten, bully and intimidate, has instead brought us together to stand as one, united, unified and stronger than ever. We are not a group that can be controlled by fear. Rather than tear us apart, we are now unified with a common goal and purpose. We will fight, live, and RUN to remember those lost and harmed in the Boston Marathon of 2013, and we pledge that this cowardly act of terrorism will never defeat our spirit.

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