I’ve been watching the Virginia Tech coverage since the story broke. Tragedy is an understatement. The thought of a troubled man busting down doors to randomly fire without cause or provocation can fiercely penetrate one’s mind. These events eliminate every element of personal security you imagined. Safety, once relied on, is robbed.

Overwhelming amounts of media coverage only heal surface wounds for those who have experienced a loss. As this coverage pays tribute to 32 sons, 32 daughters, and 32 friends who have paid the eternal price, does it not reach an unintended audience? As you try grasping the tragic reality, you must also wonder if another sick individual feeds from this? Has the largest shooting on United States ground now become an obstacle for another to overcome? I hope not. I truly hope not.

The words that always ring in your ears may next time ring true. “If it could happen to me, it can happen to you” and “This is a small town; we never thought this could happen.” Entering the UMaine campus library recently to study, I paid closer attention to my surroundings than I had before. Looking up at each passing person, I had my guard up. Events like Virginia Tech have widespread devastation. As we all try making sense of the senseless, what is the lesson to be learned? When your mind wanders not in the direction of finals and tests, but to the location of your nearest exit – you feel the effects. We feel the effects. Everyone feels the effects.

Rhon Bell

Orono