A year ago, I wrote a blog entry about the satyagraha movement, which also had 9/11 as its inception date. This year, I wanted to link to two blog entries written by the amazing MetroDad, a blogger who I stumbled across when he wrote a compelling letter to the students of Virginia Tech in the aftermath of the shooting tragedy there. I think I first took a liking to MetroDad because he went to Cal (as did I); unfortunately, he was a hostage in one of the tragedies that occurred while I was there (a gunman took patrons in a popular bar hostage for several hours), and that definitely shook me a little. I hate to admit it, but until I read MetroDad’s letter, that incident had totally slipped my mind. It was early in my undergrad career at Cal (I was just starting my sophomore year), and so it was more than 16 years ago. There were a few other terrible incidents that year (if I recall correctly, a student died when he fell off a balcony at a fraternity house, and a female student was abducted and killed), and I don’t know if I just blocked them all out, or they just faded with time. I know that they were all extremely disturbing to me and my friends at the time (in fact, I think 2 if not all 3 of the students who died in those tragedies all went to the same high school as a friend of mine, so it hit home even harder for him), so it surprised that I had to be reminded of the hostage situation by Metrodad’s letter.
In any case, the point of the above rambling is to say that while the Cal connection might have been the inital reason that I started reading MetroDad, I keep reading his blog because he is a fantastic/humorous/thoughtful writer with some amazing things to say and spectacular ways of putting them. I am even more able to relate to his writing because I too have a young daughter, and I often readily identify with his joys and frustrations. Which brings me to today. Nowhere is his gift for writing more clear than in his entry today, titled Dear Andy. I was so floored by it I went back and read his letter from last year as well. I am so sorry for your loss, MetroDad.
