As I'm sure many of you are aware by now, quite a few horrific events have shocked Europe and the Middle East over the past few days. In the past week more than 250 innocent lives have been taken throughout various different countries due to the disgusting motives of groups like ISIS.
First and foremost I want you all to know that I am safe, and was lucky enough to be nowhere near the terrorist attacks from the past few days. However, by no means does that mean that I was not affected my the horrendous events that unfolded over the weekend.
Babson has twelve students studying in Paris this semester and fourteen of my abroad school's students were traveling there this past weekend as well. These twenty-six students are made up of the following people: one of my best friends, my roommate's best friend, three of my fellow Babson Beavers, two of my great friends that I've met abroad and nineteen people that I wish I could say that I knew personally.
Friday night I was out with friends celebrating the arrival of our friend Sam from Barcelona, where he too has been studying abroad for the semester. I remember sipping on a Carlsberg in one of our favorite bars near Santa Croce on Friday night, when the TV started displaying what was happening in Paris. With each new bit of news I could feel my muscles tighten and the edge of my seat get more and more familiar with my body. I fit the "glued to the TV" saying perfectly that night,
I remember not being able to move for a short period of time when I saw the hostage count go from 60 to over 100, and then again when their status went from alive to dead. When I regained my senses I took out my phone and immediately messaged by friend Stela who happened to be visiting Paris this past weekend. She was safe and had not been near the attacks, but the poor girl had to stay locked in her apartment all weekend. One of my other friends, however, was only a few blocks away when she heard the explosions. Her first instinct was to get in a taxi, thinking that that would be a safe place, and one that would get her away from the attacks as fast as possible. Unfortunately, as she looked up and down the streets she saw only red lights signifying that they were all full. In her moment of panic she was left with no other option but to run the mile back to her apartment. I simply cannot imagine.
I've noticed that it's easy to forget about these events while I'm at school or with my friends; however, the second I get home, or have a moment to myself, the thoughts flow through my mind. "What if I had been there?" "What if it was Florence instead of Paris?" "What if Meaghan was three blocks closer to the attacks?" There are so many petrifying "what ifs" but the one question I can't stop asking is "Why?" Why is it that there are people out there who are willing to take their own lives in order to kill another. I simply do not understand.
At a time like this I can't help but think of, and rely on my family for the love and support that it takes to get through it. I remember texting my mom on Friday night as I watched the news and just told her I was scared. Scared for my friends in Paris and scared for myself here in Florence. It takes a strong woman to say to her daughter, who is millions of miles away, that everything will be OK when there are terrorist attacks going on just 700 miles away. Events like these are those that make you stop for a second and think about what you have, and fortunately for me, I have my family, which is all I need. It's harder than ever to be so far from them but a few thousand miles could never change a thing about the love and support they never fail to provide me with.
Tomorrow I will be flying through Paris to catch a connecting flight that will take me to my final destination in Dublin. There was certainly discussion of me not going on my trip; however, in the end I decided I wanted to go. In a weird way it almost seems safer to be flying now than at any other time because of the heightened security throughout the world right now. However, for someone who does not enjoy flying in the first place, tomorrow will certainly be a very difficult, and emotional day. I fly out at 12:55pm and am scheduled to land in Dublin at 4:25pm. I will use the same email blast that I use for my blog to let you all know that I have landed safely.
All my love to my family, and to those who have been personally affected my the attacks that occurred over the weekend. Stay hopeful.
First and foremost I want you all to know that I am safe, and was lucky enough to be nowhere near the terrorist attacks from the past few days. However, by no means does that mean that I was not affected my the horrendous events that unfolded over the weekend.
Babson has twelve students studying in Paris this semester and fourteen of my abroad school's students were traveling there this past weekend as well. These twenty-six students are made up of the following people: one of my best friends, my roommate's best friend, three of my fellow Babson Beavers, two of my great friends that I've met abroad and nineteen people that I wish I could say that I knew personally.
Friday night I was out with friends celebrating the arrival of our friend Sam from Barcelona, where he too has been studying abroad for the semester. I remember sipping on a Carlsberg in one of our favorite bars near Santa Croce on Friday night, when the TV started displaying what was happening in Paris. With each new bit of news I could feel my muscles tighten and the edge of my seat get more and more familiar with my body. I fit the "glued to the TV" saying perfectly that night,
I remember not being able to move for a short period of time when I saw the hostage count go from 60 to over 100, and then again when their status went from alive to dead. When I regained my senses I took out my phone and immediately messaged by friend Stela who happened to be visiting Paris this past weekend. She was safe and had not been near the attacks, but the poor girl had to stay locked in her apartment all weekend. One of my other friends, however, was only a few blocks away when she heard the explosions. Her first instinct was to get in a taxi, thinking that that would be a safe place, and one that would get her away from the attacks as fast as possible. Unfortunately, as she looked up and down the streets she saw only red lights signifying that they were all full. In her moment of panic she was left with no other option but to run the mile back to her apartment. I simply cannot imagine.
I've noticed that it's easy to forget about these events while I'm at school or with my friends; however, the second I get home, or have a moment to myself, the thoughts flow through my mind. "What if I had been there?" "What if it was Florence instead of Paris?" "What if Meaghan was three blocks closer to the attacks?" There are so many petrifying "what ifs" but the one question I can't stop asking is "Why?" Why is it that there are people out there who are willing to take their own lives in order to kill another. I simply do not understand.
At a time like this I can't help but think of, and rely on my family for the love and support that it takes to get through it. I remember texting my mom on Friday night as I watched the news and just told her I was scared. Scared for my friends in Paris and scared for myself here in Florence. It takes a strong woman to say to her daughter, who is millions of miles away, that everything will be OK when there are terrorist attacks going on just 700 miles away. Events like these are those that make you stop for a second and think about what you have, and fortunately for me, I have my family, which is all I need. It's harder than ever to be so far from them but a few thousand miles could never change a thing about the love and support they never fail to provide me with.
Tomorrow I will be flying through Paris to catch a connecting flight that will take me to my final destination in Dublin. There was certainly discussion of me not going on my trip; however, in the end I decided I wanted to go. In a weird way it almost seems safer to be flying now than at any other time because of the heightened security throughout the world right now. However, for someone who does not enjoy flying in the first place, tomorrow will certainly be a very difficult, and emotional day. I fly out at 12:55pm and am scheduled to land in Dublin at 4:25pm. I will use the same email blast that I use for my blog to let you all know that I have landed safely.
All my love to my family, and to those who have been personally affected my the attacks that occurred over the weekend. Stay hopeful.