I am not a fan of guns. I do not want a gun in my house. I do not want to shoot a gun. I would prefer to never have to be in the presence of guns. However, I respect that, especially in a place like Maine, traditions like hunting are a way of life and a livelihood for many. And I am not saying all guns should be banned. But these f'in assault rifles, you know, the ones that have caused all the major massacres in the US in the past years? Yeah, those. Those should go. There is no need for a regular citizen to have access to those guns. They, the guns, are the problem. Yes, mental health is an component of many of the shootings, but the reality is that if these men (because men make up the vast majority of those who have perpetrated these mass shootings) didn't have these assault weapons, there would be fewer deaths, fewer chances to cause harm. Period. It all comes down to the guns, people. Seriously.
And so it was that this week there was a huge, incredibly sad, senseless, tragedy here in Maine. A mass shooting. Something like we've never seen in this state. Right up the road from us. Schools closed. Shelter in place orders. A massive manhunt. Death, grief, sadness, anger. Aie. 💔
The week started off just fine. A walk during swim practice on Monday. Nice afternoon with a bit of a chill in the air in the shade. (1.8 miles walked)
And then a bit of laziness, and the taper, and the dark morning, and a long day at work with an evening meeting, meant that Tuesday turned into a zero day. Wednesday, being a late start day, it is always a bit easier to get out the door as I can start an hour later. Ran the roads down to the river and caught the early glow of the sunrise along the horizon. Pretty morning, if a bit humid. (6.4 miles)
The tragedy occurred on Wednesday evening, and by the time Sam was headed to bed, school had already been cancelled. Thursday passed in a bit of a blur. I went into work for a bit but we were all understandably distracted by the news to be too productive. Out around town, it was eerily quiet, with shelter-in-place orders in several towns, schools closed, and many businesses closed as well. Back at home for the afternoon, we alternated working, talking and watching the news. There was no running, no errands. It was a feeling of being on edge, and feeling the heaviness of knowing no place, even Maine, where we truly do feel safe, is immune.
No school again on Friday, as the manhunt continued. Sigh. I had to do a bit of work in the morning and then because Topsham had no shelter-in-place orders, despite bordering two towns with shelter-in-place orders and being only several miles from several places of interest during the manhunt, I did venture up to the Six River farmstand before lunch, as there was no fresh food in the house to speak of aside from a bag of apples. Then after lunch, I headed down to the Hannaford in Yarmouth as the stores in our area and near the area of greatest impace from the shooting were all closed. Apparently others were of a similar mind, as the store was quite busy. Then around 2:00 pm, I headed across the street for a run. Ryan has been watching the information on the investigation carefully and monitoring the helicopter activity too, and we decided doing some of the errands and going running today was reasonable. There is always a risk when you head out the door, there is no doubt, and Thursday it felt like too much of a risk to do anything, but Friday, it seemed likely that I was not going to see the shooter across the street as I ran down to the river and back based on what we knew of the situation.
There was still a feeling of heaviness, unease and sadness in my heart and head along with some angrer and frustration at the system that allows these tragedies to more easily happen. And yes, I am not saying I went about my day and forgot about the heartbreak we were all feeling from the events of the past few days, but as the October sun shone down on this balmy almost summer-like day, I breathed a sigh of relief and felt a moment of peace as I ran on the trails through the woods. The world is a scary place sometimes, but running makes things right again, even if just momentarily. (6.0 miles)
The shooter was found dead on Friday night, apparently of a self-inflicted funshot. There was relief knowing he had been found and was no longer a threat and that all the uncertainty of the past few days was done, but the heavy feeling of grief remains. For the victims and their families, for everyone in the state dealing with the stress and horror of the event, and too for the shooter, that he was so ill that he felt he had to do what he did, and for his family for having to deal with his death and his actions. Just so sad all around.
Saturday was Maine resident's hunting day, so I stuck to the roads for my run. Ran down along the river and looped up through Mom and Dad's neighborhood. Nice morning. Bright sunshine, new shoes, raspberries and witch hazel. (8.0 miles)
After my run, I headed out to get some of the errands done that had been on hold while everything was closed the past few days, and then after lunch, Sam and I made pretzels. Yum!
Then it was on to cleaning the windows, which desperately needed it, and as it had warmed up into the low 70s (!!), we decided we had to take advantage, so we dragged Sam out for a walk around the school block. (1.7 miles walked)
Sunday, I headed out around 7:30 for a run on the powerlines. Overcast and cool, but with some really pretty light and cloud formations. (9.6 miles)
Then home for blueberry pancakes and bacon! Thanks for making a yummy breakfast (or second breakfast in my case 😂), Ryan!
Have also been stalking the weather for next weekend, and spent some time in the afternoon organizing for Rim to River before we headed over to Mom and Dad's for dinner. Gigi of course wanted to assist! 😹😹
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