Change to Save Lives and Our Society

How many more school shootings by young people do we need to see happen?

We continually hurt from these stories, hear horrific news and rarely do we take action. We numb up.

Somehow, once it happens, we tune in to the latest news, move on to our next responsibility or task because we have lives to live. Maybe we just avoid it altogether.

When I would hear of these first occurrences and episodes of violent loss of life, I would say, “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and community.”

We all feel helpless, and I have often moved on to my day’s ever-changing events, suppressing the pain.

Maybe you have your own way of coping with these horrific trauma-filled situations.

Yet, there is no reason that a young person should have access to guns without monitoring from parents and guardians. We all know these can become weapons - where there seems to be no repercussions until we have unnecessary victims in another death – either accidental or in an intentional act. The latest incident happened in a community in Georgia - on the first day of school. A fourteen year-old had access to a gun his dad purchased for him.

It has to change.

And, what I write may be perceived by some of you as just words - without action. I do not want it to happen to us, our own families, our own communities, or our own neighborhoods.

Some will try to destroy me saying that I do not believe in the Second Amendment, and that I am trying to take away your rights.

We as Americans have this right, and I am not advocating we take it away for adults who have had background checks and can take care of our own guns responsibly.

As a teacher for much of my life, I have heard parents say, “This will never happen in my school.”

Or, “Where I live, unlike those people, we are civilized.”

And, “We will always have these situations. It just gets sensationalized by the media.”

There are so many arguments not included here - that I have heard and can be made.,

I have seen and heard a lot.

Our young people deserve better.

Over the past two decades, I think we are doing a better job with trying to minimizing bullying, treating each other with respect and kindness, and yet I still see people being attacked because we/they may not be like us - or we were hurt, so we project it onto someone else - and the cycle continues.

Yet, the fact remains that unless we as communities, in our own families, and as a society - set the example for our children, we will continue to see these unnecessary deaths happen at our doorstep and possibly our own schools.

Visualize this. After this Labor Day weekend, I passed by a local school for a walk before I headed to my own workplace. This day, school was starting up at this elementary safe space to help prepare our kids for life.

My eyes started to water, as I saw a mom holding her daughter’s hand - ambling along to get her young lady to the bus stop. Her jacket was dropped and mom picked it up and placed it on her daughter’s free arm. I also saw a dad carrying two backpacks, affixing one to his older son, giving him a pat on the shoulder and said what appeared to be reassuring words to the younger boy - as they each entered the doors of the local school.

We all love our kids, and want our communities to be safe and full of joy.

We have choices to make, people.