Very recently, I spent a whole day alone walking through Boston. No one needs to boast about Boston; this city's reputation for education, medicine, lifestyle, art and culture is beyond repute. What struck me during my day-long stroll was its beauty.



On this visit to the Athens of America, I eschewed Newbury Street in favor of Boylston, for reasons I'll never know. I lingered at the finish line of the Boston Marathon outside The Lenox Hotel where my daughter, Mary '03 worked at reception until this year. What a beautiful part of a beautiful city! Now, that little corner of the planet is the center of universe due to the unthinkable. 



A day on which Boston celebrates its Revolutionary history with the greatest international athletic event outside of the Olympics, a day in which people cheer contestants for effort over accomplishment, a day in which the Red Sox play a matinée (and win in the bottom of the ninth,) we have to process atrocity.



Most people who choose careers in education do so for reasons that transcend renumeration. We want to be around good people. Our peer teachers are good people, because they share the cause of bettering the lives of young people. The young people are pretty cool, too. 



It's not easy to reconcile the inherent optimism of eduction with terror. And, for many of us who think of Boston as our city, this is different from the Oklhoma City event, which was much more terrific and horrible. It happened here. My son Andrew '00 called at 3:50, having just crossed the Mass. Ave. bridge on foot and asked, "What are they saying on the news? I just saw some bombs go off in Boston." 

Perhaps what an event like this can do is help us appreciate the contrast from the demented. Let's be grateful for the sanity of healthy communities. 







A Facebook friend who loves to flaunt the dominance of the New York Yankees posted this truth: Doesn't matter if you're a Yankee or Red Sox fan...EVERY American is a Bostonian today.