It’s not been easy, but try being normal

Try being normal.

Again and again, we’ve been encouraged to do just that.

We’ve heard it from President Bush. "Tomorrow when you get back to work, work hard like you always have," the president told Americans Sunday.

We heard it from area officials Tuesday at a Snohomish County memorial service for victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

"It is important that we carry on with the regular activities of our lives," said Dave Somers, chairman of the Snohomish County Council.

An anecdote from a parent who happens to be a congressman said it best.

Mental health forum A free public forum to help people make sense of feelings about last week’s terror attacks will be held at 7 tonight at the Snohomish County PUD Auditorium, 2320 California St. in Everett. Participants will make handprints to add to a chain that will circle fire and police departments in New York and Washington, D.C. The event is hosted by the Snohomish County Chapter of the American Red Cross, the Snohomish County Disaster Mental Health Network and the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management

Speaking to hundreds gathered outside the county courthouse Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen told how his son, Robert, had asked, "Why did those mean people drive the plane into the building?" The 5-year-old had quickly turned his attention to other matters, asking, "Well Dad, do you want to color in my coloring book?"

"We need to take a lesson from Robert," said Larsen, a 2nd District Democrat. "We need to get back to the business of living."

Easier said than done. Pardon the cliche, but it has never been truer.

Try being normal?

In the wake of last week’s horrors, Bush promised "whatever it takes" in a counterterrorism crusade. So we await whatever this new brand of war will involve, even as fears linger over any new wave of terrorism.

As if those uncertainties weren’t enough, we are reeling from Boeing’s announcement of massive layoffs, as many as 30,000 workers by the end of 2002.

It all feels like a one-two punch.

We here can’t fathom the feelings in New York or Washington, D.C. Nevertheless, we are sickened too, as we digest staggering news.

Try being normal?

It looks normal enough out there, except for all the flags.

The parking lot was packed Wednesday at 24 Hour Fitness, a health club in south Everett. Twin specters of war and unemployment didn’t stop people from sticking with exercise routines.

At Scrub-a-Dub Laundry on Evergreen Way, two women were stuffing quilts into big washing machines, normal as could be. Like people I approached at the health club, they were edgy. They didn’t want to talk. Who can blame them?

Jeff Adkinson, owner of Video West on Broadway in Everett, has watched people trying to be normal all week.

"A lot of our customers have been really upset — very, very emotional," he said. "But there’s actually been an increase in video rentals. People are renting comedies. It’s escapism; they want to be able to laugh."

I feel too guilty to rent a video or watch anything but TV news. Frivolous entertainment feels wrong while others suffer so terribly.

It’s not wrong, though.

Karen Kipling, director of Care Crisis Response Services for Volunteers of America, urges people to "take care of your heart" in this time of uncertainty.

She said the Care Crisis Line (800-584-3578 or 425-258-4357) had an immediate increase in calls Sept. 11, and continues to hear from people "experiencing anxiety and fearfulness."

"We talk about their feelings being a normal response to such a scary situation," she said.

Callers are advised to connect with family and friends, to pursue their spiritual traditions and to not be "completely glued to the television," she said.

"Human beings were not made to take in huge amounts of negative information. Keep informed, but set some limits," said Kipling, who spent Sunday planting mums and watching her granddaughter’s soccer game.

One normal sight for drivers along Evergreen Way over the years has been the display window at Clyde Revord Motors. We can’t pass by without glancing up to see a two-story image of some beloved movie star or sports hero.

On Wednesday, sign painter Jim Noonan was working on the car dealer’s latest display. He was copying an Associated Press picture of three firefighters raising an American flag in the New York rubble. The photo bears a striking resemblance to the World War II picture of the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima.

"United We Stand, God Bless America," Noonan’s lettering says. When you see the picture, you know instantly that these are not normal times.

"Our concept of normal is constantly being adjusted," Noonan said.

Try being normal anyway.

Contact Julie Muhlstein via e-mail at muhlsteinjulie@heraldnet.com, write to her at The Herald, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206, or call 425-339-3460.