By Nanette Collins
Boston is our town and home is less than a mile from the Marathon finish line. After more than a week where a large swath of Boston’s Back Bay was a crime scene, our town looked sensational last weekend, gleaming under sunny skies. Everyone heeded the Mayor’s invitation to visit and throngs of people were walking around, shopping, dining and reveling in all the city has to offer.
Boston is getting back to normal.
Copley Square facing Boylston Street is home to a newly erected memorial for the bombing victims and long lines have formed to walk through. TV camera crews are still around. The stores are open, but one building that houses Marathon Sports, the scene of bomb blast number one, has plywood on a door and several windows. Lenscrafters, visible in some of the early photos of the crime scene, is open, but one wide, tall wall of windows is boarded up. And, The Forum restaurant where the bomb went off must have been heavily damaged because it’s fronted by a plywood structure.
Analysts more insightful than I am have been writing the “where were you” pieces since April 15, so I won’t bore you with our story. We weren’t at the Marathon this year. (Check The Boston Globe website for comprehensive coverage: www.boston.com.)
Looking back on these last weeks, I’m struck by the reactions throughout the Boston area. Initially, we were confused and anxious, but not afraid. Shortly after seeing live footage of the bomb sites, we heard reports that the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Dorchester had been bombed and may be connected to the Marathon bombings. That proved to be wrong, fortunately. It was an electrical fire.
Tuesday, April 16, was another beautiful day, much like Patriot’s Day or Marathon Monday. Everyone was out going about their business and no one appeared to be cowering. We moved away from shock to being really angry because the Marathon is sacrosanct in Boston.
Don’t take my word for it. Dennis Lehane, author of “Mystic River” and “Gone Baby Gone,” penned an OpEd piece in The New York Times titled, “Messing With The Wrong City.” (It can be found at: http://tiny.cc/w4xfww.)
By Friday morning, one bomber was dead, the other on the loose and we were instructed by the Governor to stay safe in place while teams of police searched Watertown, Mass. Everyone complied. We weren’t afraid then either, but anxious and riveted to our favorite news outlets for any scrap of information.
Once he was captured, a group of college kids spilled out of the building across the street and sang “God Bless America.” Spontaneous celebrations erupted around the city, including on our street. What a town!
Boston is about connections. It’s a small big city, so I shouldn’t have been surprised when I learned an acquaintance knew bomber number two because her son had gone to high school with him. But I was. The Boston Globe ran an article with details on the bombers’ family and noted that the mother attended a school to become an aesthetician run by our friend. I was shocked.
Another connection is my friend from Lebanon who’s has been in the U.S. since 1996, about the same time we met. He loves sports and has a connection to the Marathon’s organizer. She invited him to be a volunteer at this year’s marathon. He jumped at the chance and spent Sunday handing out numbers, greeting the runners and having a grand time.
Monday, he was at the finish line handing out medals when the first bomb went off. He heard a noise, saw the smoke and thought it was bomb, but decided it couldn’t be since this was America and not Beirut. When the second bomb went off, he dove into the VIP bleachers to lead three friends to safety and had to fight a stampede because someone yelled, “Bomb.” Once he had everyone accounted for and safely out of harm’s way, he tried to run to the injured, but the police had already taken charge and surrounded the crime scenes. My connection is a hero and proud American who stands in stark contrast to the two brothers who allegedly grew disenchanted with the U.S.
Later in the week, ESPN interviewed him and asked if he would be at the Marathon next year. “Of course,” he replied, a sentiment shared by many Bostonians. We’ll be there next year. Maybe you’ll want to join us.