I would love to write something beautiful about the Newtown, CT massacre that left 26 innocent souls dead, but I could never in a million years adequately express my condolences or say anything that could honestly provide solace.
Instead, I’m going to answer a question posed online:
“Do your children know about the tragedy?”
The answer kids, is YES.
My daughters have watched news reports, funeral processions & asked questions while I did my best to explain the police’s attempts to find out what happened. I answered questions about Heaven, that if something bad happens, listen to your teacher, etc.
I know I’m going to get flamed for my terrible parenting & that’s okay, but my job is to educate & inform. It’s something I pride myself on & what kind of hypocrite would I be if I shield my daughters from the very thing that provides them their standard of living? I am their mother, it is my job to educate them as well & sometimes those lessons aren’t good. How do we teach kids how to understand grief, pain, the concept of compassion if we shield them from each bad thing that happens. My girls want to help those families with everything from playing with the kids until they go back to school to offering to donate money to a scholarship fund in the victim’s names & I couldn’t be prouder of their warmth, their heart. They know the world can be bad, but it’s up to us to be good.
My heart breaks for those parents who will never share a birthday with their sweet angels, or sadly enough, teach them the hard lessons about the world. As people, lets not let those beautiful people die in vain; do not forget their names & honour their memory by living a life of compassion, kindness & love.
The Misadventures of MHC 