Finding Comfort in the Senseless

I was teaching my 7th period class today when the bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.  My phone started ringing the instant classes ended.  We have several friends who live in Boston that we were worried about, and my mother-in-law is a race trainer and she always has a group or two of people running in major marathons.  Immediately, Chris and I touched base with everyone we knew and we relieved to hear they were all safe and sound at home or back in their hotel rooms.

I came home tonight and sat around our little kitchen table with my family.  We blessed our food, and prayed for peace and comfort to those effected by the tragedy today.  It was hard to explain to Bean.  At three, he doesn’t need to know of senseless violence.  But what he does need to know is that sometimes people get hurt, and that we can help them by bowing our heads and praying for them.

Later, I hope he and Gracie both know that God dwells in places of senselessness.  I hope they know that kind words to hurting people can make a difference.  I hope they know that sometimes it isn’t our place to know why, but it is always our place to ask what we can do to help and how we can prevent things like this from happening again. Mostly, I hope they know enough love that they are not numb to these horrific experiences.  I hope their hearts are full of compassion and empathy, even for those they don’t know.

I also hope that however you were effected by the tragedy today, you are finding comfort and peace in whatever or whomever you seek to find it through.  Because I think that is at the root of senselessness.  I think it is people who haven’t found what they are seeking.  The world is senseless to them because they are missing something, and so they return senselessness to the world.  So, seek what you are looking for today.  And then tomorrow be the light that helps others find what they seek, even if that looks different than what you found.

If the world had more torches of kindness, perhaps we would no longer be victims of such dark days.