A Time For All Things

Christian Bale and friend visit victims of the shootings. 

I haven't said anything about this on the blog.  Until now.

I don't need to recap what happened at the Aurora Mall movie theatre in the early hours of July 20, 2012.  Only someone living beyond the reach of the cyberworld, doesn't know.

And while I have responded to some stupid comments in Facebook about it -- perhaps with my own version of counterstupidity -- I won't indulge those sorts of thoughts here.

Though, it was a comment in Facebook that brought me to write this.

A local radio host -- who has covered many a horrendous news stories in his still-young career -- posted about the opening of NFL training camp at the Broncos training facility.  My response:  "ah, the onset of my favorite season of the year!".

The next commenter thanked us for living the "heaviness of this summer" with a post about something light and refreshing.

Perhaps a few upcoming comments won't be so kind.  But you know...it is right that we talk of other things, too.

While I didn't know anyone who was personally affected by what happened at the movie theatre, I think I can say of some of the heroes therein that died to save others...they wouldn't want their girlfriends to live the rest of their lives in grief and regret.  They didn't save their lives for that.  They'd want them to grieve, reflect, remember...and then move on. 

Because Life goes on.

I thought some about the four young men who died, protecting someone(s) they loved.  The ultimate act of love and of courage, is sacrifice.  Not everyone who has that courage within them, is ever faced with having to use it.

We owe a lot to those who do, though.

But more:  we owe a lot to those who, though never having to do what these four young men did on July 20, are in positions that, on any given day, could put them into that very spot.  Police.  Firefighters.  Paramedics.  Any nature of first responder.

And of course, our very own young men and women of our nation's military.  The best of the best.

Though, lest I forget, there are everyday heroes.  Unremarkable people to those who don't know them, but on any given day and time, step up when danger and disaster rears its ugly head, and remind us that the human race -- for all it's peculiarities and eccentricities -- is made of some damned fine, courageous, unselfish stuff.

I've never been through a situation like July 20.  I suppose that the closest I've come -- and it doesn't count, because only those inside can know the true horrors of what the rest of us were horrified to watch -- is Columbine.  I was 5 miles away, and as far removed from the events therein, as if I'd been on the Moon at the time.

I've had a pretty unremarkable life.  Most of us have. 

Most of us will never face a crazed sniper in a tower on a college campus.  An Oklahoma City.  A Columbine or Virginia Tech.  A 9/11.  A Flight 93.  Or a Minneapolis or Aurora mall massacre.

We should count our blessings.

But there will always be those who serve to respond, whenever and wherever it happens.  They know the potential risks, each time they respond.  They do it, anyway.

And there will always be those 'innocent bystanders' at a Ground Zero who will step up, even knowing that a lesser act might allow them more time on this insignificant cosmic ball we call Earth.  They'll not have time to rationalize it; they'll just do, in a moment, something that ends their lives, in an effort that they hope will save others.

And I believe that they don't do it so that their loved ones can live the rest of their own lives mired in grief, guilt and regret.

Our heroes act, so that the rest of us can carry on.

And we honor those heroes, by doing just that.