One week ago today......parents all over america sent their kids to school fully expecting to see them later that day. For 20 parents in Newtown, Ct that didn't happen. A killer went in to Sandy Hook Elementary heavily armed and opened fire killing 6 adults and 20 children before shooting himself.
I, along with most of America, am absolutely heartbroken. What an unimaginable tragedy. I have felt sick to my stomach, I have been brough to tears repeatedly, I have seen my husband brought to tears many many times this past week. I did not know them but I am mourning them. I cannot even begin to imagine what these families are going through. The heartache must be almost unbearable.
Not that the loss of these children is any sadder than the loss of any other child but the way it happened is just so senseless and so horrific. An illness or an accident is horrible and sad but in most cases it is unpreventable but this was so senseless and it was intentional....it never ever should have happened. I put myself in those kid's minds and what they must have felt and it just breaks me. And the number of kids lost....20, it is just so hard to accept. And the brave teachers and staff......Victoria Soto, hiding kids in the closet and telling the shooter they were in the gym before he killed her. Ann Marie Murphey who held a student in her arms as they were both killed. I can't imagine what they went through. Then the parents......such unimaginable and unbearable heartache....I hurt for them.
I just keep thinking I will wake up and be told it was all a horrible nightmare but that isn't going to happen. I truly believe our world is full of people who are good. I wish everyone was good and nobody had any reason to bring harm to others, I just don't understand why.....or how someone could do such a thing.
I'm not one to take things for granted, I know were not promised tomorrow. I don't feel my family and I are invincible....I know things can happen, I just pray that they don't. For that reason....I never hang up the phone without telling my husband that I love him, I always make sure a hug and an I love you are the last thing my kids get before they go off to school. I try to fully appreciate my family everyday.....every moment and this is exactly why.....we just never know what can happen.
I try to put this in the back of my mind but it just doesn't work, I think about it constantly. I feel like the world just needs to stop while we take time to mourn and begin to heal from this tragedy but it doesn't work that way so this is my little way of remembering the victims:
The Children:
- Charlotte Bacon, 2/22/06, female
- Daniel Barden, 9/25/05, male
- Olivia Engel, 7/18/06, female
- Josephine Gay, 12/11/05, female
- Ana M. Marquez-Greene, 04/04/06, female
- Dylan Hockley, 3/8/06, male
- Madeleine F. Hsu, 7/10/06, female
- Catherine V. Hubbard, 6/08/06, female
- Chase Kowalski, 10/31/05, male
- Jesse Lewis, 6/30/06, male
- James Mattioli , 3/22/06, male
- Grace McDonnell, 12/04/05, female
- Emilie Parker, 5/12/06, female
- Jack Pinto, 5/06/06, male
- Noah Pozner, 11/20/06, male
- Caroline Previdi, 9/07/06, female
- Jessica Rekos, 5/10/06, female
- Avielle Richman, 10/17/06, female
- Benjamin Wheeler, 9/12/06, male
- Allison N. Wyatt, 7/03/06, female
The Children's heroes:
Rachel D'Avino, 7/17/83, female
- Dawn Hochsprung, 06/28/65, female
-Anne Marie Murphy, 07/25/60, female
- Lauren Rousseau, 6/8/1982, female
- Mary Sherlach, 2/11/56, female
- Victoria Soto, 11/04/85, female
May they rest in peace!
And this is a post decicated to remembering the lost not to start a debate or anything so I will keep this brief but I do believe we need change. I do not believe banning guns it what we need maybe banning certain ones and certain gun accessories but if we ban guns they will still be out there, everywhere. They will just all be in the hands of the bad guys not in the hands of the good guys. Look up the times that guns have saved people or prevented tragedies, I have and there are lots of good stories out there with good endings not tragic ones. I also believe the mental health issues need to be addressed....get these kids and their parents the help they need, make it more obtainable not so difficult. They are crying out for help and i've seen first hand parents who try and just can't get the help their kids need. Let's help them before they feel like the only way to get the attention they need is to do something so horrible and so evil.
Like I said, I truly believe the world is mostly good but we sure do hear about a lot of bad anymore so I hope the loss of these lives can have some meaning and in their memories some changes can be made to end all the senseless violence in the world and truly become a more peaceful and happier place. After all our time here is so short anyway....why does anyone want to waste any of that time harming others.
