The Reality of the Fantasy World

Hello fellow bloggers, readers and passers-by,

I want you for just a moment to clear your head. I want you to think about one question.

"What is a terrorist?"

When you hear the word Terrorist, most of you will think of foreigners from some distant land who choose to rid the world of the Western beliefs/philosophies/leaders/etc. But why? Why is that what we think about? Is it main stream media that has tainted our vision? Is it Hollywood and their drive to exploit our fears? Is it fantasy - unreal - a mere facet of our imagination which sometimes runs wild? Or is it something more?

To me, a terrorist is ANY person who brings about a feeling of terror, fear, depreciation, anxiety, or panic. So would I consider a home grown person a terrorist? Sure, if they are crazy enough to open fire in a theater full of innocent lives - yes, he's a terrorist!

I'll continue with this point in just a moment, but I want to take a second to reflect. I'm a mother, a sister, a wife, an aunt, a niece, a granddaughter, and a cousin. I have five children - two girls and three boys. My boys love action movies and namely, anything comic book related such as Spiderman, The Hulk, and Batman. As I write this blog, I can't help but think of some grief stricken mother, sitting in her dinning room, Kleenex in reach, coffee cup filling over, pouring her heart and soul out before God himself, as she remembers the last time she said, "I love you" to her child. Or a father, who sits in his lazy boy, dazed and confused as he tries to remember the sound of his sons laughter. Or the wife of a man who said, "I'll see you in the morning" as he walks out the front door with his young son to entertain his hidden youth at a theater. And while I try to imagine how they must feel, tears prick my eyes, pain slices through my heart and fear envelopes my soul as I remember just last week, my uncle and my oldest son venturing to the local theater to see Spiderman - and how blessed I am that he is still safe and sound in my house, laughing and playing and growing.

His name is James Holmes. He premeditated a strike of terror against innocent lives in the early morning hours of July 20th. Aurora, Colorado was awakened to panic - lives were lost - others were injured - and as police try to solve the mystery, one question still comes to the front of my mind: Was he a terrorist? Yes!

He trapped his apartment, #10 as reported on ABC, with explosives, knowing officials would want to get inside to find out more about him. He strategically wore a bullet proof vest and a gas mask when he ushered his onslaught onto the spectators at the theater: Was he a terrorist? Yes!

He shot 12 people, including a 3 month old: Was he a terrorist? Yes!

His mother said, "You have the right person"... Was he a terrorist? Yes!

I can't help but feel some remorse for this woman. But another question rises in me. Did she know something? Could this have been prevented? Did he display any psychological episodes that would have led one to this conclusion?

While we may never know the why, we can deduce the what... Lives were lost stolen! While we may never fully define 'terrorist' one thing remains certain: Fear and panic rise when we feel unsure about a situation - and I have that fear, that panic: I'm terrorized.

Until next time,
~L