Boston was my home for a long time and it will always occupy a very special place in my
heart. It has been a painful week to see the horrific images from the Marathon.
My thoughts are with the people there especially those injured and grieving and as always I am utterly in awe of those who, without a thought for their own safety or whether there could be other devices set to explode, ran towards possible danger to help the injured.
The human spirit is indeed a mighty force.
Categories: Life
ONE WORD AFTER ANOTHER 
You must feel especially sad at this dreadful news, Sallie. It is indeed heart-warming to see the courage and goodness and desire to help that came without hesitation, but heart-breaking to think of the evil that prompted it.
Yes indeed, as I think we all do. The news from Texas is equally horrific as are the further developments in Boston overnight involving even more loss of life.
One of the things I miss most about the States is their sense and strength of community. I know first hand what a resilient bunch they all are, how they do truly enfold and encircle when times are tough. I have nothing but admiration for their Emergency Services; from the thousands of volunteer fire-fighters and EMTs up and down the country, some of them I am proud to call friends–ordinary people with huge and extra-ordinary hearts and courage–to law enforcement officers who sadly so often have to put their lives on the line to protect and serve but most of all I think for the folks who just pitch in and do what they can without counting the personal costs.
In the face of our celebrity obsessed world, these are the true heroes in my opinion. There will always be pieces of my heart in Boston, New York and Seattle where I spent most of my time and it is certainly a time to reflect on and count my blessings, stop moaning about my lot and instead have compassion for all those in the troubled areas of the world, be it from accident, natural disaster or sadly man-made.