The Shooting in Tucson

Although not as timely as some of my posts, the wanton killing of six people along with the wounding of 13 others still merits coverage. The act was so heinous it may be one of the events I will remember where I was at the time I heard of it. And that was about 100 miles away in Mesa at our winter home.

I got a text message from my old boss and current friend, Chief Sue Riseling, of the University of Wisconsin Police Department. My wife and I were watching something on our TIVO when the text said that a Congresswoman had been shot in Tucson. We turned on CNN and the story played out as most are now aware.

After seeing nearly back-to-back coverage, we became enmeshed in the stories of the people involved, even the shooter's. Learning that he may be mentally ill was of little consequence to those who lost so much, but it provided a "reason" of sorts for those looking for the "why" of it all. No reason is sufficient or ever justified, but there was at least something to grab onto.

Last Friday, January 21, we took a drive to Tucson to see for ourselves the ever-growing memorials at various sites in the city. My wife had received her first ICU nursing experience at the very same University of Arizona Hospital (now Medical Center) where the victims, including Congresswoman Giffords, were taken.

It was apparent as we drove up to the Medical Center that the idea to visit was not ours alone. Even 13 days later, there were large groups of people wending their ways through the flowers, posters, candles, and other tributes to those killed and injured. We spent time walking the grassy front lawn, taking some pictures, and saying silent prayers as we read as much as we could.

I noticed a young woman who seemed to be organizing some sort of display and I quietly asked her if the Safeway Store, where the massacre took place, was close. It was not, but she offered to sketch a quick map. I found a piece of cardboard and a pen for her. She asked if we wanted to see all of the "Migils." I said, "pardon me?", not sure what she had said.

"Do you want to see all of the 'migils'?" Again, I looked puzzled and she then explained that some of the displays were memorials to those who lost their lives, and some were vigils for the wounded; both words now truncated, apparently, into "migils."

With the aid of her map we made our way to Representative Giffords' Tucson office, and then to the Safeway store on Oracle Road. Both were moving memorials, uh, "migils" as we spent time again reading, thinking, and praying as we walked.

The Safeway Store, now open for business, had condensed the migil area to one that was on the exact spot of the congresswoman's neighborhood meeting, hence the site of the horrendous killings. Being in this spot just 13 days post tragedy was unsettling at worst, but at the same time, comforting at best. The cop in me scanned the people around the area, looking for who knows what, but looking still. It is not always obvious who may be there to hurt people. It likely was not obvious on January 8.

Visiting the area was helpful in a way. The word "closure" is maybe too heavy for someone who had not suffered a personal loss. But we felt better somehow as we drove back to Mesa.

Maybe closure is the right word, because in the greater family we are all a part of, it was personal.