IF THE 'GUY IN THE ORANGE SHIRT' CAN GET UP FROM BOSTON SHOCK WAVE, WE CAN TOO

There are tears at the finish line of every marathon.

Tears of joy.

Tears of pain.

And, tears of  "we really did make it".

Runners may get the medals, but the road to the finish line is paved by family and friends who also sacrifice during the training and preparation. Then, on marathon day, hundreds of volunteers line the miles to provide precious water and fuel. Strangers cheer and offer high fives to the fast, the slow and everyone in between.

Finish line tears fell for different reasons after the inexplicable events at yesterday's Boston Marathon. Instead of runners, supporters and cheerleaders - family, friends, volunteers and strangers had to become unplanned heroes after two violent explosions erupted near running's most famous finish line.

"Bloody", "war zone" and "loss of limbs" were used in nearly every description of the scene.

Even when the television didn't play on with a continuous loop of the first bomb going off, I couldn't stop thinking about the "guy in the orange shirt" going down and not knowing if he was hurt ... badly ... or worse.

Hours later, an ESPN interview provided the needed update: 78-year-old Bill Iffrig  - the guy in the orange shirt - was OK after being sent to the ground by the bomb's shock waves. He only had a scratch and some difficulty with his ears.

An unplanned hero helped the Lake Stevens, Wash., runner to his feet and start moving again, eventually crossing the finish line and walking a few blocks back to his hotel where his wife was waiting.

All the while hosts of other unplanned heroes tended to the dozens of injured and terrified.

This morning, a photo of the fallen Iffrig surrounded by police (shot by John Tlumacki of The Boston Globe) appeared in our newspaper and undoubtedly countless others around the world. (When we look back on this years from now, I predict this image will be included every time the topic is revisited.)

The hardest part now begins as the shock wears off. Death and injury counts will become more real. Details of the bombs will become better known. The culprit(s) ultimately will be found, and the twisted rationalization for carrying out something so heinous will be revealed.

As we did for Oklahoma City, 9/11,  the Colorado movie theater, Sandy Hook Elementary, and a sadly growing list of senselessly self-inflicted wounds, we all have to do what the unplanned hero and the guy in the orange shirt did.

We have to help each other up and keep moving.