¶ At midday today, people across Europe held a two minutes silence in memory of those killed and injured a week ago in London.
It was one of the most unexpectedly moving experiences I have ever had. Here in London, as elsewhere, people left their offices and lined the pavements in glorious hot sunshine. Every single vehicle stopped and an eery quiet descended, initiated by the tolling of Big Ben. The silence was obeyed impeccably; all you could hear was the occasional clicking of camera shutters quite rightly recording the tribute for history. The two minutes seemed over incredibly quickly and ended with a spontaneous ripple of applause. In that short time many people were brought to tears. It is incredibly hard to describe the shared emotion, but it was palpable; almost tangible; and could be read on every single person’s face, a steely combination of sadness and resolve.
Comments
1
Obviously my thoughts and feelings are with you…
...but what purpose exactly does observing silences like this one serve?
...showing a ‘steely combination of sadness and resolve’.
to who? the evil purpetrators of last weeks atrocities? they wont be watching as they dont care what we think feel or say.
...all i can see that mass silences serve is to asuage our collective greif by having a ‘group hug’...
and then appluading?
...i find it creepy.
...sorry.
2
I guess you had to be there, Jim. Nowt wrong with a group hug if it’s truly meant.
3
And nothing wrong with taking 2 minutes out of your day to remember those who died senselessly, and what their families must be going through, then getting on with our day.
If we don’t ever reflect on our past, we won’t be very well prepared for our future.
No need to participate in a group hug if you don’t feel like it. I sat at my desk, turned everything off, and quietly reflected to myself. Some others were in here, some others went outside. Personal choice.
4
Your account of the event almost brought a tear to my eye.
For me, although I wasn’t there, the silence was respect for those who died, and the applause was the resolve to move on.
Perhaps it’s only sad that it takes a tragedy to bring people together like this.
5
(Goose skin.)
6
Rich: Good post about the two minutes in the life of Londoners, Brits and Europeans, where the memories of last week’s events were remembered, where the victims were remembered, and where collective unity was extremely evident.
Jim: Good points – because, well, not everyone is going to empathetically support the grieving of others. (The applauding does seem a bit bizarre – but what is normal? A week ago: normality was shattered by events more creepy than any hand-clapping).
It is fair to say that everyone has their own unique way of remembering (or not) the bombings on Thursday 7th July.
For two, short minutes, it was a nice gesture that so many people decided to put aside what they were doing and present a united example of rememberence.
7
Very good report Rich.
Jim – no purpose beyond community. Britain is re-discovering that everyone else here is family, and it’s rediscovering it’s resolve. I can’t imagain a two minute silence which progressed as reported happening anywhere else in the world.
The applaus makes perfect sense to me. It’s a clap on the back to show solidarity, it’s a flicking of the V’s to people who thought they could break us. It’s pride, and not all pride is bad, nor misplaced. It shows qualities that I had thought the British had lost. I’m pleased to find that’s not the case.
8
I too find comfort in this type of ritual. At times of great loss, I think the human soul craves a way to express that life will never be the same. To show in tangible ways that we give a damn.
I think the moment of silence also gives us an opportunity to not only mourn the loss, but to think of how we will respond.
One year after 9/11, we stopped the main clock tower on my campus at the time that tragedy began. All day long, the clock stood still.
I know that I spent that day remembering the loss of innocence, appreciating how precious and fragile life is and remembering that I must play a role in making the world a more peaceful place.
9
I heard on the radio here in France this morning that in many places the two minutes lasted up to five minutes.
Our thoughts are with you all. Senseless death is much worse than death.
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