i wrote this comment because of one of kelly's posts, but wrote too much and it wouldn't fit. so i post it here.

i always looked at this picture, but never read what you wrote underneath it. I, too, have seen the columbine crosses up close. For our senior trip at church, we went to Denver (home to the Avalanche). The church we stayed at was at the foot of a cemetery where three of the students were buried. It was a beautiful place, at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. When columbine happened, i sat in front of the tv as much, or more than I did for Sept 11. I was so moved and hurt and broken by what had happened. I felt like I almost knew all the people. It was so real that it was scary. When we got to the church, we noticed there were alot of people down at the bottom of the cemetery road. They weren't there for a funeral, but seemed to be looking at something. Later that day we trekked down to see what all the commotion was. There stood all 12 crosses and a bunch of different trinkets and pictures. Each cross was covered in writing from family members and friends. It was heart-breaking to stand there and read the writing. It was the true pain felt by those who lived through the tragedy. It's different when you read about something in a newspaper or online. When you read something from someone who was involved, it's incredibly transfixing. I made it through just one cross before I started to cry. I continued to read the other 11 crosses in tears, trying to stop crying, but not wanting to leave. After the final cross, I was broken. I couldn't stop crying and just felt as though the world and my thoughts were going to crush me at any time. No more than 15 feet away from the crosses was a statue. I don't know how i hadn't noticed the statue before. It was white, and looked heavenly. It was probably 15 feet tall and had a large base below it. It was almost like a bench, but it didn't seem right to sit on it. The statue was a depiction of jesus calling his chidren. He had his arms out, waving for all to come. I felt led over there, away from the crowds and my friends. I sat below Jesus for probably 20 minutes just praying and trying to compose myself. I tell you, I've never left somewhere so horrible, with so much peace.

on a side note: i'm without email for the time being. they deleted my tech account on accident, but won't turn it back on for two more days, so sorry if i'm not responding.