Guns, viruses & steely hearts

"Bomb" was the first word I heard when the radio alarm clock clicked on this morning. Something about a hotel evacuated, other weapons discovered - and they weren't talking about Mumbai. It was here in Phoenix. Scary!

I was relieved to read it was a smoke bomb, and no one was seriously injured. It actually happened last night. I've been a little slow on the news lately.

In fact, when I posted this and even this, I didn't realize the Mumbai attack was still ongoing.

By the time I reconnected with the world on Friday, I was shocked. There was still fighting in the Taj Mahal Hotel. There was a shooting in a toy store. And a Wal-mart employee was trampled to death by shoppers. Stomach-turning news. Also, I realized today would be World AIDS Day. Such a heavy heart.

What do I tell you on a day like today? Not about the idyllic Thanksgiving Day I had. No, not today.

Do I tell you to be thankful for each day we live and breathe on this earth? To remember the dead and the dying? To support a cause - giving to fight AIDS or help the people of Mumbai? That tragedy could strike anywhere? Maybe. But none of that seems sufficient.

We live in a violent world. And - I hate to say it - we all contribute. If we do not shoot or bomb or hit or yell, anger still smolders silently. We are jealous or disrespectful or bitter or or uncaring or spiteful or feel we deserve to be treated better than someone else. None of us escapes the violence of the heart.

Last night I was angry with my husband - one of those times where all the little stresses, concerns, frustrations that have built up come tumbling out at once for no good reason. I vented, cried, ranted, blamed, cried more, then I was all choked up, but I managed to stop sniffling just long enough to look at him and say, "I'm sorry I'm so mean."

This morning I was still wondering what to say to you. And as I prayed about it, one thought finally resonated: Love one another.

Love your neighbors - the ones next door and the ones inside your house and the ones in/from a country that's not your own. (Yeah, they're our neighbors, too. The planet's not that big.)

After that, what else can I say?

*****
Photos:
1) By me.
2) By Swami Stream. CCL.
3) By Dystopos. CCL.
4) By heath_bar. CCL.
5) By the Hubs.