To me, three particular moments stick out as having been the most emotional one is of triumph and the other is of sadness while the third had so many mixed feelings that it is still today being pondered deep within the hearts of us all.
1. It was a jam packed arena. Energy was high. The crowd was amped. They were in the edge of their seats after having seen what will forever be an all around classic night. And then, in the main event Chris Benoit capped off the night by making Triple H tap out to the Crippler Crossface, finally winning the coveted WWE title. His name would forever be solidified into the halls of wrestling history alongside Bret Hart, Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Shawn Michaels, The Rock, and the man who he had just beaten for the title. And then, as this man began to spill over with emotion after winning the title, it was believed that this moment could not become any more special. But if you thought that, then you were wrong. Out came Benoit's good friend, and long time colleague, Eddie Guerrero, with the world title that he himself had successfully defended against a young Kurt Angle, who was still in his prime. He embraced Benoit and both held up their titles to show that they had both "made it". They both took the same path, which split down two separate roads, and this was the apex of their achievements. Tears would stream down any hardcore wrestling fan's face over this.
2. There lives a moment that stretched from one side of the United States to the next. It covered one entire continent with a shade of grief. This moment was when the light known as Owen Hart's life, was tragically extinguished. On a fateful night, one that will never be forgotten, Owen Hart, in his persona as The Blue Blazer, attempted a Sting-like ascension from the rafters only to have the cable snap and experience a fall that snapped his neck like a twig. In that moment, a Hart stopped beating. A talented wrestler from an immense legacy saw the live crowd of the sport at which he traded his craft for the very last time. It was tragic to see yes. But for those who did not see it, we saw the aftermath on WWF and WCW tv the next night. On RAW, the show was held up and superstars spent the night talking fondly of the wrestler. Many tried to hold it together and be strong, but many were unable to. A true testament to how shaken up the masses were was told on the face of Debra McMichael when she could barely even find the words to describe how much her time with Owen meant to her. She was too choked up by tears to even speak or gather her thoughts. And just to show how much he meant all around tot he wrestling industry, WCW gave Bret Hart carte blanch to go against kayfabe and to take time off or to step down if he needed to. This never happened with the loss of Rude. It never happened with the lose of any other superstar. That's how emotional this loss was to wrestling.
3. A moment that will forever live in emphamy. A day that has been shrouded in turmoil and mixed emotions. The moment that we found out about the Benoit tragedy. Not the entire tragedy, mind you, just the initial moments where we found out that the entire family was dead. We wondered why God would take away such a talented wrestler and how this could have happened. Where was the justice? Where was the manhunt? Where was the blood that we screamed for over the monstrosity that this event appeared to be. We shed tears. We watched best of matches. We paid eternal tribute to the man, the machine, the entity know as "The Wolverine" and "The Crippler". Especially the day of a pay per view. And then the truth came out. We found out that Benoit had went insane and slaughtered his family and then himself. And our tears of sorrow turned to tears of rage. Out calls for justice were silenced by calls for answers. We went from mourning to disbelief, and then to hatred. A melting pot of emotions took over as we searched for answers as to why a man would murder his young handicapped son and his wife so coldly. Then steroids were blamed and we couldn't begin the witchhunt fast enough to condemn the good old "wrasslers assistant". Wrestling couldn't distance itself from Benoit fast enough. It was as if all record of his existence needed to be erased. Even today, it is almost taboo to speak his name. You would think that he was a villain from the Harry Potter film. But in reality, it was no movie. It was real. Too real for us to even grasp today.
