Yesterday, celebrations were held in London to mark the first anniversary of the city being awarded the 2012 Olympics. At the time, last year, I was sitting on an Air Canada plane with my family, waiting to take off for a two week holiday in British Columbia when the pilot announced the result and we all cheered. Today commemorations will be held in London, to mark the first anniversary of the bombings .

This is a private and a public event now.

Private for those who were on those trains and bus, for their families, for the people who stopped to help, the underground staff and the emergency services present at the time.

Public for those of us for whom this is a vicarious traumatic event. We weren't there, and don't have memories of near death, body parts, choking smoke. So I feel a bit strange writing about this event. Who am I to comment? I wasn't even in the country, but in a hotel in Vancouver being woken up by my husband's mobile phone ringing as family and friends called to let us know what had happened. We watched the coverage on Canadian TV. The camera pointed at Edgeware Road tube station was positioned in front of the Metropole Hotel, where a makeshift emergency triage centre had been set up in the foyer. A few weeks before, myself and many other people here had been sitting in that same foyer, attending a Stargate convention.

Although like many Londoners, I subscribe to the mantra 'we are not afraid', the truth is that we are. Of course we are. I'm afraid every time I get on a tube train, something I do twice a day. The thing is that it doesn't stop us from carrying on as normal anyway. What else can you do?

3 Comments:

 Mal wrote:

9:33 AM     LINK

I remember the shock of that day.... Also being relived that you were in Canada.

((((((hugs)))))

 Matt G wrote:

11:19 PM     LINK

That was a very wierd day. Of all the places I could have been when Al Queda hit London, coming out of the surf in Newquay was the last place I expected to be.

Best thing about the aftermath: Gypsy said it, 'we are not afraid'.

Worst thing: The habit of a lot of people to blame everyone but the bombers for the ir sickness.

A couple of months after the bombing, I signed a petition. It never went anywhere but it's still around and here's my entry:

http://www.unite-against-terror.com/whysigned/archives/000064.html

 Greybeard wrote:

1:02 AM     LINK

Thank you Gipsy. Your post brings disquieting but necessary memories to the fore.
And yes, Matt, a weird day. One that should have brought everything into pinpoint focus, but somehow didn't. We need another hit upside the head with that 2X4 apparently.

I'm continually amazed at the naivete....... I hope it's not stupidity, of so many people. Some still have not realized we are truly in a religious war with a people that cannot take responsibility for their actions: Israel is totally at fault for the destruction of Lebanon..... (pay no attention to the two Israeli soldiers that were kidnapped or the hastily aimed rockets raining down on the heads of innocents!)
And to those that mistakenly refer to the "idiocy" or our leaders? Let's also place that responsibility firmly where it belongs:

http://www.un.int/usa/sres-iraq.htm

God help us all. The road ahead will be obstacle filled.

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