Michelle Xia, 20
Boston
I am a Sophomore at Boston University, and I was near the finish line across from the Lenox Hotel with two of my friends rooting for our friend from home, who attends BC, to run by and cross the finish line. I had always known about the Boston Marathon, but never had I imagined it to have as much excitement and joy as I did that Monday at the finish line. People came together to root for not only their loved ones, but strangers as well—all who were completing this amazing feat.
While my friends and I were continuing to cheer for people running by while waiting for our friend to finish, we suddenly heard a loud noise about 50-100 feet to our left. Everyone around us, including us, were confused at first until we heard the second explosion. It was absolute chaos; no one knew where to run—where would be safe. Luckily, my friend’s boyfriend’s Northeastern fraternity house was nearby, so we took shelter there as we all frantically tried to get phone calls out to everyone we knew who was around the area as well as our friend who was running. Luckily, all of our loved ones were safe, but I can’t thank the first responders and police officers enough for how quickly and efficiently they calmed everyone down and directed people to safe locations. They truly were and are heroes every day.
As a runner myself, I hope to run the Boston Marathon next year and show alongside the other runners that we are all and will always be Boston Strong.