Many people seem to have reacted to the events of last Tuesday with a feeling that their problems didn't seem so big any more. Others seem to have reacted with a feeling of guilt that their problems still <I>did</I> seem big to them.<P>My own reaction was more a feeling that I had already been through this, at a much closer distance.<P>At the risk of sounding like a reductionist, I don't believe that what happened was a great tragedy. Rather, I believe it was a whole <I>host</I> of very <I>personal</I> tragedies (many of them very great). I don't think that the sheer <I>number</I> of people suffering shock, trauma, uncertainty, loss, and an acute awareness that their world will never be the same makes the experience any more devastating at the individual level. If anything, I would think that sharing the experience would actually <I>help</I>.<P>We may be in the midst of a national and world crisis, but I make no apologies for feeling and believing that my own personal crisis is every bit as "legitimate" and real.<P>My heart goes out to those who are suffering because even though my suffering may be different from theirs, I nevertheless know from experience what suffering <I>is</I>.<P>May God grant grace and mercy to us all.<BR>

Well stated and I concur.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by GnomeDePlume:<BR><B><BR>My own reaction was more a feeling that I had already been through this, at a much closer distance.<BR></B><HR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>This was my feeling exactly. When your world has been turned upside down it matters not whether the same has happened to others at the same time. The devastation at an individual level is the same either way.<P>Very well said.<P>Steve<BR>

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by HopelessinAZ:<BR><B>Well stated and I concur.</B><HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>and i might add thanks for helping with the guilt...