Virginia Tech's "Intermediate" Memorial

Virginia Tech has announced plans for a memorial to the victims of April's shooting (Norris Hall, where most of the victims were killed, will re-open on June 18). The memorial will be a semicircle of 32 Hokie stones, each with the name of a victim engraved on it. It will be placed on the Drillfield at the bottom of the steps up to Burruss Hall. Apparently, this is where students had already set up a make-shift memorial to the victims. I remember those steps. They lead up to a platform for viewing the Drillfield. And it's the logical place for a temporary memorial. That's why I'm glad this memorial is being billed as an intermediate memorial. Burruss Hall is right at the center of campus. To have the memorial in such a prominent location on a permanent basis would simply be too much. This tragedy affected all Hokies, but it does not define us. We must allow the wounds to heal.