monday's mulling: the boston marathon

Today, April 17, 2023, is the 127th Boston Marathon and the 10th anniversary of the bombing that occurred at its finish line.

The Boston Marathon Bombing was a domestic terrorist attack when two bombs went off near the finish line on April 15, 2013, killing three spectators and wounding more than 260 other people. After an intense manhunt, police captured one of the bombing suspects, 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, whose older brother and fellow suspect, 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev, died following a shootout with law enforcement.

I remember hearing about the bombing, turning on the TV, watching and listening to news reports tell the story over and over again. My sister called. Her daughter was a student at MIT and Madeline’s sorority had volunteered to staff a water tent along the route. Fortunately, that tent was nowhere near the finish line. But still…she was there.

A month later, May 5, 2013, 6:30 a.m...my daughter would run the Flying Pig Half Marathon in Cincinnati. What a perfect way to start this race with the flag flying, a rainbow smiling on the runners, bagpipes playing "Amazing Grace" in honor of those who died and were injured at the Boston Marathon, a fabulous men's quartet singing "The Star Spangled Banner," and then Neil Diamond's rendition of "Sweet Caroline blaring over the speakers. Wow. 

From Porkopolis to Beantown: In the starting area, people signed signs of support for the City of Boston, the race participants, and the first responders. Back in the day, steamboats were repaired and built in Cincinnati. It became a meatpacking center, where livestock was slaughtered, butchered, and sold there, or shipped from there. Cincinnati became known as the “Porkopolis" when it became the pork-processing center of the country.

All along the race route, policemen dressed in their riot gear walked along the streets. Many law enforcement officers were positioned on top of buildings. Such an imposing presence and an in your face reminder of what happened a month ago.

But then there was hope...catching glimpses of my daughter as she ran along the hilly route. She looked so strong and happy. At the end of the race a burst of energy kicked in and she sprinted to the finish line. She was tired but she did it. The thrill of the competition, the defiance that good overcomes evil, and the relief that she was safe.