Turning on the Light by Kirsten L. '15

It’s hard to wrap my head around the chain of events that unfolded within the last couple of hours.

As emails flooded my inbox around 10:45 last night warning me to stay inside, I couldn’t really process what was going on.
The idea of a shooting occurring on campus was impossible in my head.
MIT, the place that I call home, the place where I learn and live, the place where I felt safe, threatened by armed people? And all this happening after the bombing too.
What was going on?

Text messages flooded my phone. Facebook blew up with updates on the status of the events.
Police officer shot. Explosives. Car Chases. Automatic weapons.
Why was all this happening?

Then, when the news unraveled that MIT CP Sean Collier had died, I just felt numb.
Tears came to my eyes.
Why did these things have to happen?

I sought solace from some other friends and watched the events unravel.
As we listened to the news into the wee hours of the night, things seemed very grim.
Needless to say, I didn’t sleep very much last night.

But the purpose of this blog isn’t to inform about the events that happened.
It’s to reach out to those at MIT.

These last 12 hours have been rough, but I want you to know that if you’re feeling upset or sad, you’re not alone. As Michael touched on in his blog, we’re in this together.Take some time today to reach out to people in your dorm. Check on how they’re doing and share how you’re feeling. You’ll probably find that talking about these things can be comforting in times like these. You never have to feel alone in the battles you take here.

Nothing attests to this better than what I’ve seen in the wake of these events that have happened. I’ve never felt more proud of the MIT community  than I have in these past couple days. I know the stress of MIT itself can be overwhelming, and to have this piled on top of everything else that’s going is enough to just push us over the edge. Yet, it’s so comforting to see students checking in on people, campaigning to raise funding for families affected by the bombings, and even organizing a breakfast for the campus police this morning (Great job Emily ’15! You can donate online here to help the family of CP Sean Collier).  Many of my friends have changed their facebook pictures and posted notes of gratitude to all who have helped those in need during this time of tragedy. We all give thanks to the officers who have worked so hard to keep us all safe and will never forget those who were lost in these past few days.

I know that even during the darkest of times, we will work together to help heal the wounds we share.
After all, “Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, when one only remembers to turn on the light.” – Dumbledore

Stay Safe. Stay Strong.