Blacksburgtangential

April 18, 2007

Today would be my parents' sixty-fifth anniversary. This past weekend was my thirtieth college reunion. I had intended to write about the event and the visit to Richmond, but all that is on hold. My friend Corby from Queen Anne and Westhampton wrote on Monday afternoon.

It was wonderful seeing you Saturday... Ken and I both enjoyed our too short visit with you. You look terrific and you have had so much happen in your life, both good and bad.

I was frantic this morning , as you might guess... since Chris [older son] goes to VA Tech and some of the shooting happened in his very dorm... took several hours to get a hold of him to verify he was safe... had slept through it all (as did his roommate) since their classes didn't start till later in the day this morning. Thank God. I can't imagine how someone could walk on to a campus (or anyplace else) and commit this heinous crime. Figure has risen to 31 dead now.

The papers today are naming most of the victims, having begun later yesterday, including photographs and bios, which catch at the throat. The numbers become people, students most of them, amazing smiling very alive people, all of them. Were. Liviu Librescu, to survive the Holocaust and communist Romania and achieve international renown as an aeronautical engineer so that he might block a doorway so that his students might escape through windows ...

What does one say?