I sit here -- on my comfy couch, with my three tiny blessings sleeping in their beds -- on the heels of two shootings; the one in Santa Fe earlier today and one that a news alert just informed me happened a graduation ceremony tonight in Georgia.
I sit here -- trying to watch a movie and escape into the world of Marvel -- when all I can marvel at (and by marvel, I mean seriously question) is just how it is thatthis is the world I live in; a world where school shootings happen at all, let alone twice in one day.
In truth, this is not about me having to live this kind of a world -- the kind that is apparently plagued with far too many individuals with evil in their hearts and not enough safeguards in place to protect the rest of us -- but my children.
No flippin’ way should this be their reality.
I did not bring tiny humans into this world to experience tragedy.
I did not birth offspring so that they could go to school and for both of us to wonder whether or not they will come home.
There is not very much I can do at an individual level to change the unpredictable world we live in, but there is one thing I can do:
LOVE MY CHILDREN HARD.
LOVE MY CHILDREN FIERCELY.
RAISE THEM TO KNOW LOVE.
RAISE THEM TO SHARE LOVE.
RAISE THEM TO BE LOVE.
Change needs to happen on so many levels, and yes, collectively we can drive change. But, on a slightly more realistic, everyday basis, I can inspire change one munchkin and one heart at a time. And maybe, just maybe, each of us doing our damndest to ensure we are raising children who feel loved, accepted, needed, wanted and whose mental health is being looked out for, maybe just maybe we will see fewer children creating harm.
Yes, there needs to be changes to policy.
Yes, there needs to be changes to laws.
Yes, there needs to be security measure changes.
But, where I can make the most change, at present at least, is inside of my home with the people I am raising.
And, for that reason, I will continue to make it my daily mission to love my kids ferociously, and I hope and pray that you do the same.
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