I watched these high school students play steel drums, and enjoyed some locally made food.
And, while I sat on a ledge, eating a locally made sausage (it was good, too!), I suddenly had a random thought.
We were so vulnerable. We were on a closed off street, and throngs of people were out there enjoying the beautiful spring day you can see in the picture above. (Today, we are back to rain). But the happy vibes could change at any moment, and that is what our modern terrorists feed on.
In London, last night, they fed again.
I have several British friends on Facebook. I've never met any of them in person, but I read, helplessly, their posts last night. Two lived in London until not that long ago, and were asking everyone they knew to let them know if they were safe. Another posted that her son, who lives in London, had already reached out to her and he was safe.
Safe, yes, but traumatized. Again.
This is our modern world. And we have to figure out how to stop this. We are all vunerable, but there are also solutions to all problems.
The trick, of course, is to find a solution that will not turn our democracies into dictatorships headed by strongmen who promise security, but then spread their own type of terror. Most Americans do not know what that is like, but I grew up among men and women who knew what that was like firsthand.
Fear can do strange and terrible things to populations searching for security.
Just ask those survivors, fewer every day, who were alive during the days leading to World War II. My growing up neighbors are all dead now, but they taught me well just by their existence. They never talked about it (trauma does that to you) but I read a lot about that era, growing up in the 50's and 60's.
I just hope we can make our way through this latest challenge to our civilization without losing our freedom.
Important post. Thanks for sharing. Blessings to us all.
ReplyDeleteMy son is in London on business. I cancelled my planned trip and have no regrets. I have no use for many organized religions as they seem to enjoy going to war against those who do not share their belief.
ReplyDeleteVera Beautiful
ReplyDeleteIt is important to "keep calm and carry on." We must never let hate and fear win. Learn from the flowers. They are persistent. They can take root and bloom in cracks in the sidewalk.
ReplyDeleteI get it, how vulnerable you felt
ReplyDeleteAs with the Paris attacks, the London attacks took place in very well-visited areas. I can't tell you the number of times I've visited the Vauxhall area & Borough Market as both a visitor and resident of London.
ReplyDeleteHeaps of praise should be given to emergency services and the shopkeepers who were able to provide safe shelter to those in need.
I still believe we safe in most part of the world. But it still awfull what happen to these people.
ReplyDeleteCoffee is on
I wish there is a long term solution to this. I don't understand why people do such things. Why can't we unite and progress together. I just feel helpless when I hear news like that of the London attacks.
ReplyDeleteLovely flowers! Yes, I often think about what my parents must have endured during WW II. My dad and my grandfather served in the US Navy and rarely talked about it. My mom only had a few stories she ever told, but I sensed tremendous fear and anxiety from her concerning those years.
ReplyDeleteI try not to think about terrorists but to enjoy the beauty of my surroundings. I believe that, if you're constantly worried about attacks and you change your life to reflect that fear, the terrorists have won. I think that joyful living is the best defense that individuals can have against the cruelty of terrorism.
ReplyDeleteWhen we all get the lesson, people will look back at this time and wonder how anyone lived this way. And it'll seem obvious to them--the solutions. This is where I pretend to live, hoping one day the rest of the world will catch up with me.
ReplyDelete