will you be this thankful and celebrating on april 19, 2014- or will you have forgotten?

Based on TV and social media, It’s clear that millions feel the Boston Marathon bomber #2 capture is a huge victory and means to celebrate. I’m not sure I see it that way. The country is cheering because 1 man was caught after killing and injuring multiple people? Is this a victory? Is this something to celebrate? I suppose “knowing” that 1 dangerous person is off the streets might be comforting, and the fact that modern technology has made incredible leaps giving Joe nobody the ability to assist law enforcement in finding these criminals (great!)- but are we all really comfortable now after this capture? Are we all actually going to sleep better tonight? I wonder if the families of the deceased are going to have a comfy cozy nights rest at their homes minus one person. I wonder if the the families of the injured, holding the hands of their loved ones in the hospitals that will never be the same as they are fitted for their prosthetic limbs- are going to “sleep tight.” I doubt it.

I sit here shaking my head at the news on TV, and the posts on social media sites like Facebook, knowing from experience that people forget. (I so wish this was not the case.) People celebrate and thank when It’s the thing to do. When the cameras are there. They congratulate public safety workers, mourn for the deceased and injured today, but they forget tomorrow, next month and next year. I’ve seen it before. I hope this time is different and I will be wrong. I really hope this time is different and I will be so, so wrong. I hope that next year on April 19th at 9pmEDT all Bostonians (and all Americans) will stop what they’re doing as they are in this moment, and stand on the streets to cheer public safety workers and salute military men and women who make it possible for us to roll into a Starbucks daily and grab a latte happily as we head off to our free to do anything American days of everything that’s possible because they are putting their lives on the line so we can do just that. I hope we all spend a night and then some a year from now and more, supporting, loving, and hugging our neighbors, and friends as we are tonight. Yes, I hope every American, 365 days from today, will stand and clap for all those men and women in uniform who put their lives on the line every single day. I hope we remember the tears that welled up when we heard the stories of the heartbroken family members of the wounded and dead. I hope we remember the gut-wrenching knot we felt until we heard back from that friend who was in Boston (especially the ones that were running) who we weren’t sure were safe on race day until hours later. I hope we all start to give a real shit about how lucky we are to be living every day, with our health, all of our limbs, and all those little things we too often forget.

I hope.