Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2007. Mattie was five years old. On that day, he was invited to his preschool friend's birthday party. Kate had the party in a gym and a gymnastics instructor did all sorts of fun activities with the kids. Mattie had a wonderful time, he loved being included, and he truly felt right at home with his preschool buddies.
Quote of the day: There are some trajectories you cannot change, no matter what you do. ~ Jodi Picoult
As I was getting myself ready this morning, I was listening to the radio and hearing about spontaneous street parties and sing-a-longs that took place on July 4th. There were storms, including lightning, on Independence Day, which caused the whole National Mall in Washington, DC to be evacuated. It was unclear whether the show and fireworks would take place or not, so uncertainty during such a massive holiday event could have led to all sorts of reactions in people. Anything from anger, disappointment, or in so many cases..... spontaneous creativity that united people together. I truly loved what I was hearing on the radio, so much so that I turned to YouTube to try to find videos capturing these wonderful circumstances.
We live in a complex world, where we tend to see the worst in people highlighted, promoted, and constantly discussed on social media. You just can't get away from it. Which is why when I hear stories that are positive, that bond people together, and capture the beauty of the human spirit, I feel it is worth calling it out!
To get onto the National Mall, required every participant to get screened and to go through magnetometers. It took people hours to make it through these check in lines, so you can imagine having to leave the area (after going through all of that) because of weather, was not on anyone's to-do list. Nonetheless, here's the beauty of the human spirit.... a spontaneous street party took place on Pennsylvania Avenue. This 9 minute video below captured it, as the video goes on, you will see that almost everyone was participating and getting into the festive spirit.
As I watched this video, I thought to myself..... what would I have done in such a situation? For me the response differs greatly from before my divorce to now. I freely admit that after Mattie died, I avoid crowds at all costs. Crowds of all kinds. I do not like being confined, trapped, or around loud noise. Therefore, even if I wanted to go to such an event on the National Mall. I wouldn't! But now, I am a shell of my former self. At one time, I would have had the desire to have fun, to jump around with others to music, NOW I can't see myself doing this! Divorce impacts people differently. For me, I did not see it coming. I viewed myself in a loving and committed relationship, so for me, on any given day I feel as if someone removed my skin. The world is now more painful to traverse than it was three years ago. Nonetheless, regardless of how I feel, I can still appreciate what I saw in this video and it made me smile.
Some people danced in the streets, but many others headed inside Smithsonian Museums to shelter in place during the storm. Hundreds of people landed up at the Department of Agriculture. I have to admit, even living in Washington, DC for over 20 years, I have never been inside that building! So it was amazing to see the wide open atrium, which reminded me of the Building Museum or the Old Post Office Pavilion in Washington, DC. If you look at the video below, you will see countless people all bunched up next to each other and spontaneously singing together..... God Bless America.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2205843443505110
Somehow seeing these videos reminded me that the human spirit lies within all of us. The goal is never to lose sight of this inherent gift.
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