Pray For Paris

I'm writing this on my phone. There's been no real drafting or proof reading etc. like I usually do with my posts. I'm not going to write any philosophical answers to the worlds problems as I feel like that would be an insult to the people working hard to restore as much peace as possible and to try to be clever and right in telling people how to pay respects would be rude and innapropriate. What I would like to say is this: as someone who finds it unpleasant and plainly scary to watch the news, I have been, in the worst way, captivated by the headlines oveer the last 24 hours. As a blogger I felt like I had to write something. I experienced genuine fear today I think for the first time in my life. I've had panic attacks but this was different. Sat safe in my home in a separate country to where these attacks took place with my family safe around me, I felt fear. Partly because I'm not stupid and I know Britain could well be next on the list but more so for people that I've never even met. Reading stories of how people pretended to be dead next to the bodies of their loved ones. That's fucking terrifying. I've been to concerts with my boyfriend. That could easily have been us if they had chosen a different target. I was about to turn 3 when 9/11 happened and today I selfishly thanked my stars that I was so young because I dread to think of the fear the world experienced that day. It's tragic that it takes times like these to unite us but it's ironically beautiful to see: people comforting strangers, crying for lives they may never meet, feeling relief over survivors whose faces flash on a tv screen never to be seen by our eyes again. Whatever happens as a result of this senseless tragedy cannot change the one thing we gain which is our unity and I hope we can hold onto that. 

 Stay safe and stay united, these people thrive off of fear and isolation. If you find comfort in praying then pray, if you feel helpless and like all you have to offer is changing your facebook picture to one of French colours then do so. The one thing all of our gestures have in common is that Paris is in our thoughts and that is important. Instead of critisising how others pay respects, pehaps we should realise that we need to stand together in every possible way, including how we discuss this tragedy online. 

 My thoughts are with the ones left in the turmoil, with the lives cut too short and my respect goes out to all who have been touched in a way in which makes us stronger as a nation. In a world of war it's up to us to show them love.