A Thank You Note to New Englanders in Times of Celebration

Before I get into this note, I just want to take a second to send out some extra love to the Lewiston, Maine, shooting victims' families and friends, and just give a heads up that although it hopefully isn't, that this note may be triggering.

And while it's not meant to bring you back to dark days, just proceed through this note at your own caution, since it's meant to highlight the good of us, but does bring up content that may hit home, and I would never want to surprise you with bringing up past painful feelings or anything.

That said -- thank you, New England.

We've been very fortunate over the last 20 years to routinely all drive from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island -- all over New England, basically, and maybe even further -- and gather in the streets of Boston to celebrate together.

The Red Sox finally Reversing the Curse and winning the World Series for the first time in 86 years.

Before that, the New England Patriots bringing home their first World Championship ever back in 2001.

And countless times since to celebrate the Sox again, the Pats again, the Celtics, and the Bruins. So much to the point that multiple times off and on over the last 20+ years, Boston (and New England in general, really) has been labeled The City of Champions.

And of all those parades. Of all those celebrations. Regardless of how rowdy we all got, how buzzed we got, how outright drunk we got, and maybe even through alcohol-fueled misunderstandings and confusion that happens from time to time, the one thing we haven't had to worry about?

Fearing for our lives.

And, unfortunately, after the news coming out of Kansas City, Missouri, yesterday, with a shooting occurring during the Kansas City Chiefs' Championship Parade that left one radio host dead and more than 20 people injured -- including multiple children -- that's not something other cities and areas can say.

So, simply put, New England -- thank you.

Thank you for celebrating responsibly. Thank you for celebrating like simply solid humans that are out to have a good time with friends, family, and strangers. Thank you for allowing others to celebrate in the same way.

And thank you for, in the middle of what has become quite honestly a scary world to walk through every single day, allowing all of us to be able to safely have our guards down for even just a few hours to celebrate in public.

Whether it's championship parades, holiday parades, Pride parades -- thank you for being the kind of people, regardless the hard exterior shell we tend to have as New Englanders, that allow us to just be in the moment of happiness, jubilation, and celebration without having to look over our shoulders or fear disaster striking.