When 9/11 happened, I watched the news from my 15th floor apartment in Cambridge, looking out over the Charles River to Boston.
The 2002 view of Boston from my apartment side of the Charles River.
Two months pregnant with my first child, I remember feeling vulnerable at being in another large American city, and wondering what kind of world I was bringing a child into.
Fast forward seven more months to April 2002. As my husband and I drove our newborn baby girl home from the hospital through the streets of Boston, we had to follow a detour back to our apartment because some sort of race was going on that day. I wasn’t a runner back then; I didn’t appreciate that that marathon was THE Boston Marathon.
Me and my five-day-old “Boston bean” in April 2002
Fast forward 11 years to April 2013. From the safety of Southern California I watched the news yesterday of the bombings in Boston, my heart breaking for the people there and for the community of runners everywhere. I’ve come a long way since 2002, and now I am a runner. I ran a marathon in 4:02 and I work toward the ambitious goal of 3:45 to qualify for Boston. I know how hard all those Boston marathon runners trained to get there. It saddens me to see the loss of the life, the injuries, the distress of all those affected. And yes, it saddens me to think that those who finished the race, and were not injured, had their race experience tainted by tragedy. It saddens me to think that some 5,742 runners did not get to finish the race.
So today I will wear a race shirt in honor of Boston.
Fit Fun Mom 
Thank you for sharing. 15 years ago, I had completed 8 marathons, including 6 in Boston. 2 best years of my life were Boston’s 99th & 100th Annual Events, in which I participated & finished. I actually wore a number for the 100th given to me by a friend who qualified but couldn’t run it with 2 broken wrists in casts. I’m 43 years old & I can’t remember crying this much in the past 40 years after seeing the events on Monday & personally knowing how those runners felt.
God bless you & keep going! The 99th Boston I ran 4 hours exactly & it was my 1st one. I don’t remember which of the. 8 it was, but my best marathon time was 3 hours, 43 minutes! I never qualified for one, but someday ,,,
I’m temporarily partially physically disabled & the survivor of a brain injury incurred from my 2006 car accident, but recovering daily!
Like you, my heart breaks for Boston & anyone else affected by the idiots who took this action. I live west of Boston & don’t think I’ll ever move away from New England. You did it & I wish you the best.
I’m done typing because I can’t stop crying. I have to keep moving forward & making progress to improve myself! I’m Paul Giunta Jr at pgjr99@gmail.com.
Have a great day! I will.
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Two great posts—by funfitmom and Paul Giunta, Jr. Good luck, Paul, in your continuing recuperation from a car accident Your attitude must help you tremendously as well as being inspiring to others. My heart goes out to Boston runners, the victims and their families. What a senseless crime!
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