Sandy Hook Sadness

Sandy Hook Sadness

The day the tragedy happened in Sandy Hook, we were very ill with the flu. I posted the blog button that was scheduled with all other bloggers, that would appear on December 16th. We all agreed not to blog that day. 

Much to my dismay, it never appeared. Why? I'll never know. I checked my postings and there it was. Scheduled. I thought that I might have forgotten to schedule it because of the high fever I had that day. But no. It was scheduled.

I did my student teaching in Newtown. Sandy Hook is a section of Newtown, sort of like a village within a town. I remember being horrified when the news first broke. 

I thought I was in a delirious state of mind from fever, but when I woke up hours, later, it wasn't a bad dream. The quiet, beautiful town was headline news. How could something like this happen? 

What kind of monster could do something like this? My mind was reeling. Not in Connecticut, not where I spent formative time, teaching fourth graders under the guidance of one of the nicest, most capable teachers I've ever met. 

My neighbor called and was frantic. Two teachers from our town had taken positions in Newtown and she wasn't sure the names of the schools or where they are now. Later, we found out they were safe. One had been at Sandy Hook Elementary last year, but she had been transferred to another school, this year. The other teacher was in a school at the northern end of Newtown. What a relief.  

I'll end this post to say that the local news has been reporting that the town is overwhelmed with all of the teddy bears, gifts, and other things people from around the world are sending. They show updated pictures of it, on television and at this point, they're not sure what they're going to do with it. All of the biodegradable items, like flowers and the Christmas tree, wooden items may be turned into "sacred" soil and placed in a park as a memorial, but there is much more than can't be recycled. The news reports are saying as of today, that sending money, for the families, is better. 

God bless the little children and their families, the brave staff, the residents of Newtown and people of the world. God has wrapped those who were taken from us, in his loving arms, where they'll remain for eternity. When I was young, our minister always told us that God loves us and has a plan for each and everyone of us. His words have always been a source of comfort, especially now.