30 Years Ago

Has it been THAT long?  Really?  Yes.  Yes, it has.  The anniversary of this particular tragedy always plucks at my heartstrings.  Lennon's death wasn't the type of event that one could possibly call earth-shaking, unless you're "of a certain age," or were living in the UK at the time, or both.  And I was both.  I remember hearing the news, oh boy, like it was yesterday.  I was in the 2119th Comm Squadron's technical control facility at RAF Uxbridge in full chemical gear going through one of our semi-annual war game exercises when the news came across the wire.  We continued on with what we were doing, but the FIRST thing most of us did after getting the exercise "all clear" notification was to gather around a teevee to get what few details were coming in from New York.  The rest of the duty day was quiet and solemn for most of us, even the younger troops.  It was hardest for us (relatively) old guys and gals, though.  The key question that ran through our conversation was "Why?"  Why John Lennon?  What did he ever do to anyone?

The Second Mrs. Pennington and I drove home that evening in silence.  We took a light dinner on the floor in front of the TV and watched the Beeb all evening, mostly news capped off with an impromptu Lennon tribute that was very well done, especially considering the lack of time to prepare.  It was a sad and teary evening, to be sure.  Looking back on the event I'm amazed at the emotional impact Lennon's murder had on us... all of us.  It's hard to explain, but I think George is on the right track here.