More i remember where i was, how i learned about something big. Much of it of from morning paper or evening tv news at home. The attacks on Freedom Riders, the church bombing that claimed 4 young lives, the Cuban Missile Crisis.
With JFK assassination notes were brought in to teachers during 6th period (Irvington, NJ -On eastern time) and they announced to us. Two classes, Bookkeeping and Business Machines, crowded into the Bookkeeping teachers' class so we could listen to news on a small radio. i was sitting on Broad windowsill with many others. When they said last rites has been administered we knew it was 'done'.
Malcolm X assassination in '65, evening tv news. With MLK, Jr's assassination in April of '68i was on train from NYC to NJ (no need to burden y'all with details of why), there's a portion of the trip UNDER the river so outside the train cars. i was standing holding a strap someone in nearby seat opened a newspaper with a lot of noise so i glanced down. They were holding it spread wide and i could clearly see his photo and the headline that he'd died. Tears just quietly rolled down my face. Two months later it was RFK, via evening news on a small B & W TV--same one 1st DH and i would watch the first moon landing on, a more upbeat end to tumultuous decade.
But it was tame considering the endless undeclared wars, serial killers, mass shootings and socio-political horrors to come. Good thing i have to get offline for awhile soon and do some things, because going into city tomorrow for an appt. If i do get back online to day i'll be hopequesting, glimmersearching ('Glimmers' are the opposite of triggers--kind of--one gets triggered but is flooded with good feelings.
There's been so many things in our lifetimes, public and personal tragedies. Sometimes all jumbled up. On 4/19/95 living in a small town in Wyoming daughter at school, DH #3 at work. Heard news of the Oklahoma city bombing while doing house work. After family home we decided to go to local ice cream shop trying to clear heads of all horror. A voice mail on answering machine, informed me my father had had a very bad stroke. Despite the message my sister left as soon as talked to her and learned Docs believed it was caused by metastasic cancer i knew his days were numbered. In June as soon as DD's school year finished we went to Florida to care for him.
