Yesterday was a very sad day for Boston. The bombing during the annual Boston Marathon took away three lives and injured more than 170 people. I don’t know what kind of heartless person would do this knowing that so many kids would be in danger. Reading all of the articles and listening to the news makes me sad and drives me to the verge of tears. None of us expected this to happen, which is probably why it has a bigger impact.

I was in a retail store in the downtown area when all of a sudden I started receiving texts and calls asking if I was okay. I was confused because I didn’t know what was going on and then I was told that there was a bomb explosion. I was a little scared because I was so close to the scene. I walked outside the store with my mom and didn’t really see much because I wasn’t close enough, but I heard the sirens. Suddenly the crowds and traffic didn’t look normal anymore.

What’s even scarier to me is that a couple of my college friends asked me earlier in the day to join them to watch the marathon. Who knows, maybe if I had gone we would have ended up near where it all happened. Maybe we would have gotten seriously injured – or maybe nothing would have happened. I didn’t really consider going to the marathon because I went last year and wasn’t necessarily excited about doing it again this year. Yesterday I wanted to go shopping. I asked my mother to come with me and she was debating on whether she wanted to go or not. Had she decided not to go with me, I would have been at the Prudential Center – very close to the finish line, where it all happened. Too close for comfort. Instead, my mom met me and we went shopping downtown. To me, it feels like my mother saved my life. My condolences and prayers go out to all of the victims of yesterday’s tragedy in Boston.

A friend posted something on Facebook that I’d like to share with you: “This shook us, but we shouldn’t let it break us.”

Here are some additional resources for anyone who needs help recovering emotionally:

• Managing traumatic stress: Tips for recovering from disaster and other traumatic events
• Taking Care of Your Emotional Health after a Disaster
• Recovering Emotionally
• Disaster Distress Helpline (24/7 phone and text)

-Erica