Happy May, world! I stepped outside this morning into sunshine. And breathed it in with gratitude. Sunshine helps me breathe. I don't know why, but I forget to breathe. Seriously. I'll be going through my day or be in the middle of a physical activity, and realize I have forgotten to breathe. Maybe I need one of those blonde-joke heasets which repeats, "Breathe in, breathe out." Or maybe I just need sunshine. The warmth of golden rays reaches my heart, releases everything held inside, and pushes air through my lungs. I haven't read it, but I know of a book entitled "Breathing Lessons." Perhaps I ought to write an autobiography entitled "Learning to Breathe."
Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. soldiers today. The news is all over the television. I am listening in a kind of half-there state, looking at the celebrating crowds at Capitol Hill and Ground Zero with mixed feelings. One thing I love about America is its resilient spirit, the collective force of millions which believe we have freedoms to believe in and fight for. September 2001 tore at our spirits as it challenged our freedoms. Of course we want to celebrate the death of a man who symbolized the antithesis to our American spirit. I get that. There's a bittersweet kind of justice that comes with the end of a terrorist. But at the same time, I can't join in the celebration of a life no longer. So many individuals, around the world, have sacrificed their lives for the cause of their country. My prayers go out to our men and women who continue to fight for what America believes, long past the end of one man in history.
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