A Different Kind of Bombing

The explosions at the Boston marathon today weigh heavy on my thoughts tonight.  It's hard for me to understand why someone would deliberately set out to harm another human being like that.  It just doesn't compute in my brain to compute, especially when I am lucky enough to be involved with a group that is focused on a different kind of bombing.

We've been calling it letter bombing but lately, it's been christened "random acts of mail."  The idea is that anyone in the group can nominate (or "bombinate") someone they think needs some cheering up.  We pick a name or two each week, share their name and address and everyone who wishes to do so sends them a piece of mail.  Sometimes we know their story, sometimes we don't.  They might be dealing with an illness or going through a particularly stressful time at work.  It doesn't really matter why they need a mailbox full of goodness and as far as privacy goes, it's really none of our business.  The fact is, who doesn't need a whole lotta love in the mail?

I sent a postcard of Brighton, England to our
first recipient.

The idea for the group came about through the letter writing group I've been involved with this month, organized by Lindsay Ostrom, who wrote this post about one of our first recipients.  Lindsay suggested the idea, most of us enthusiastically jumped on board.  The letter writing project is only intended to last for the month of April (in celebration of National Letter Writing Month in the U.S.) but we're going to continue with the random acts of mail for the foreseeable future.

If I could write a letter to the people of Boston today, it would be this: "We feel your pain.  We send you our prayers and our support, our wish that you didn't have to experience this shock, this horror, this abomination, our hope that the goodness that lives in so many hearts will forever outweigh the evil that lurks within those few who would perpetrate such a crime."

My heart goes out especially to those people of Newtown who were present at the Boston marathon today.  I didn't know before tonight that the last mile of the race had been dedicated to the victims of the Newtown tragedy. What a horrible shock for those who attended to find themselves in the midst of yet another frightening event with such tragic consequences.  They didn't deserve that, not then and not today.  No one did.

People of Earth:  Let your heart explode with love, not hate, with joy, not fear, with compassion, with understanding, with forgiveness, not jealousy or greed or resentment.  Please.

P.S. If you'd like to participate, let me know and I'll get you added to the group on Facebook where we share the name and addresses of the recipients.