It Was a Rough Week

As I tucked Dylan into bed last night I could tell he wasn't in the mood to go to sleep yet. After a week of vacation, I knew he needed it and would pass out immediately but he was stalling.

"So how was your week?"

I paused for a moment and responded, "Absolutely horrible buddy."

This wasn't quite the answer he was expecting and with a glaze of confusion on his eyes he asked, "Why? What did you do?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all and that is the problem," I began."I spent every hour of this past week either scared, angry, sad or worried. There wasn't a moment to concentrate on anything else because my mind and emotions were committed elsewhere."

Monday for me began on a bad note due to some personal stuff. I wasn't in the greatest of moods to begin with when I saw the first mentions of an explosion via Twitter on my iPad.

With several friends running in the Marathon and many more along the route or in my beloved city, I instantly jumped to the television to find out more.

Over the course of the week there was the swing of emotions that many of us felt. The confusion and sadness evolved into anger and worry. Details began to roll out. Rumors and speculations ran rampart.

Everyone reacts differently in times of crisis. Mine was to hunker down and plan for the worst while hoping for the best.

This morning as I woke up and looked at the morning sun I felt like things were feeling a bit closer to normal than they had in the past week.

For the first time I could smile and not be afraid to let go of my children when I hugged them. It hit me how thankful I was that they were not in school last week because that would have added to my anxiety and fears.

New Englanders are a hearty lot. We can take a beating and get back up. We stand by our morals and have a strong ethical code that most of us live by. Whenever we get kicked down we don't take long to dust ourselves off and get back in full force.

Last week may have been a rough week for me, but it was nothing compared to how rough it was for the families of all the wounded, killed and traumatized. Our first responders defined what it means to be a hero and we will never be able to thank them enough.

On the grand scale, my week was a grain of sand compared to the boulder of rough that many others were and continue to be dealing with. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone touched by the horrible events.

There is still much work to be done and questions to be answered.

For me, I can tell that my head is finally clear and I can get back to focusing on the tasks at hand.

Stay strong out there. Don't let those who will try to make us live in a world of fear win. We need to move forward to help the healing process continue to happen.

If you have it in your power, please consider donating to The One Fund to help those most effected.