Yesterday, the people of Boston and others remembered the horrific events of one year ago and paid tribute to those that were killed or injured in the Boston Marathon bombings. Although the actual race will not take place until Monday, this day of remembrance marked a departure from what had been the usual ramp up to the race in previous years.

It seems more and more holidays or other jubilant times are being turned into solemn occasions because of the actions of a few deranged individuals.

The people of Newtown, Conn., will never feel the joy of the Christmas season without it being tinged by a bit of sorrow for those children that lost their lives during the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

The date 9-11 will forever be associated with the thousands who lost their lives on that day in 2001, much to the dismay of those who share that date as their birthday.

More recently, the Jewish community in Kansas City was shaken from its Passover preparations when a white supremacist killed three people at area Jewish community centers.

Even here in St. John the Baptist Parish, although not a holiday Aug. 16 brings thoughts of the terrible shootings that happened here in 2012 and the two deputies who lost their lives as a result.

The people who perpetrate these crimes are joyless, and it is their intention to make others joyless, as well. So while it is right to pay tribute to those who lost their lives at the hands of these madmen, it is also our duty to carry on our lives in the face of pain and struggle, for this is the only way to truly defeat those who inflict pain just because they can, just because they think it will bury us.