Paris Attacks: Another Act of Violent Terrorism Ends in Random Deaths

As a therapist, Janis is fascinated by the way social behavior is influenced by the media, socio-political trends, and historical events.

Paris Attacks: A Day of Terror Never to be Forgotten

Another Violent Attack in Paris

Once again, my living room is flooded with chilling news flowing from the television. The "breaking news" is horrific and compelling, making it difficult to turn away, much less turn it off. I switch back and forth from one news broadcast to another, trying to keep up with the latest updates and death tolls.

I peer into my television, not as a voyeur but as a member of the world community, connected to humanity by a shared sorrow. I am gripped by the events before me because I know it could happen anywhere. I think about how less than an hour ago, I left my office in the heart of the busy business district on K Street in Washington, DC. I drove out of the parking garage, onto the streets, and into overflowing bumper to bumper traffic, all now referred to as "soft targets." What if someone randomly chose to place a bomb in the area where I drive, work, walk to lunch, and pass by the subway train daily?

This realization becomes clearer as we ponder the Paris attacks, knowing that it could very well happen anywhere. It could happen to any of us, at any time, in any country. Whether we are out shopping, attending a concert, a football game, or out to dinner at a favorite restaurant, this type of tragedy could touch any human being who chooses to exert his freedom.

This reality moved me to arrange these thoughts into poetry, as I sat there, taking in the breaking news coverage that reminded me of 9/11. I could not stop watching as the following poem below began to form.

The Beauty of a City: The Eiffel Tower

"Paris Attacks: Here Today, Gone Today"

In a city of lights and love

Death came unannounced

Here today then blown away

Innocent lives of everyday people

Without warning, gone today

Brutally taken in cold blood

Untimely endings came

Shocking a nation into stillness

No time to drink up

That last taste of fine wine

Gone to waste, in a glass

Still holding fingerprints of the dead

A moment of joy

A night of music

Punctuated by shots fired

Ringing into ears . . . still ringing

The ringing loudly reverberates

Throughout the entire world

Asking the question

As tears run down numb cheeks

"When will it end, where will it strike again?"

JLE 2015

Peace for Paris and the World

The sudden loss of loved ones to such tragedy is almost incomprehensible. I offer prayers and condolences to the families and friends of all victims who lost their lives in the Paris attacks. May their souls find peace after being ripped so harshly from a world in which chaos and evil exists. May the God of peace find those pockets of the world where evil resides, cleanse them of hate and division, and fill them with love, compassion and respect for human life.

Update: One of the most wanted masterminds behind the Paris attacks was apprehended today (3-17-16) in Belgium. As the victims heal and the families of the deceased continue to grieve, four months later, let us continue to pray for peace.

Update: And then there was Brussels, March 22, 2016.

Update: Today, Friday, April 8th, several key suspects were said to be arrested in Brussels for both the Paris and Brussels terror attacks.

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UPDATE: Unfortunately, France was hit again last summer on July 15, 2016 on Bastille Day, when a suspect drove a truck through crowds of people in Nice. Eighty-six people were killed. When will it end?

UPDATE: Too many to count as attacks in and outside of Paris continue; there were 7 terror attacks in 2017.

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UPDATE: May 11, 2019, a man wielding a knife attacked five innocent people, killing one and wounding four.

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UPDATE: October 29, 2020, 3 people were fatally attacked at a church in Nice by a man with a knife.

The World Loves Paris

© 2015 Janis Leslie Evans