Monday, December 17, 2012 —
The scenes from Friday’s school shooting in Connecticut do not correspond well with the holiday we are in the middle of celebrating.
This time of comfort and joy will now always be a time of pain and sorrow for the families of more than 20 elementary school children who were gunned down in the massacre.
There can be no adequate words written or spoken when thinking of those families who will not find those small, smiling faces on Christmas morning to open the presents that are probably already tucked away from plain sight.
In a close way, they are not our children. But, they are in a national sense.
Anytime something like this happens, it is impossible for Americans not to grieve and mourn as if those lost were their own.
This is not to ignore the tragic mall shooting in Oregon or the theatre shooting in Colorado.
Those are just as senseless and tragic as what occurred Friday and the collective grief is just as strong in those cases.
But, these were children.
Innocents who had barely begun to understand life and, with some mercy, were not yet aware of the perils that exist in the real world.
In a real sense, it was the unknown that took their promise from us.
There is no explanation for what happened. There can not be one that comes from any reason.
It is still unknown why a 20-year-old would walk into an elementary school and take the lives of so many children.
So it is with humanity.
We are a race of humans who all have good and bad sides.
Fortunately, the great majority of us understand the need to harness the bad and project the good.
The fact is and always has been there are bad people who do awful, evil and unspeakable things.
How do we protect ourselves and our children?
That’s a difficult answer to develop for a determined madman can use almost anything from a speeding car to an exploding gas can to wreak havoc and pain.
It is even more difficult to answer because we live in a society based on freedom and with that comes a cost.
We could outfit our schools as if they are prison camps with barbed wire and armed guards.
Some might suggest we supply a weapon for each teacher.
Both of those suggestions, extreme for sure, dilutes the freedom we treasure so much.
Stanly County is the type of place where we pretty much know each other. We understand the meaning of the words “neighbor” and “friend.”
We also understand the meaning of the word “responsibility” that comes with the freedoms we have.
Yes, there has been and is evil here. But, we have never been touched with it by such a degree.
We do not have the best answer to prevent such a thing from happening here.
Perhaps no one does.
The best idea now, especially in this season, is to say a prayer.
Say one for all of those who have suffered.
It might be a good idea to say that prayer while hugging your children and give thanks they are well and unhurt.
Opinion & Letters to the Editor
When will the senseless acts stop?
- Opinion & Letters to the Editor
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Celebrating small businesses and continuing new ways of communicating
Some stories are worth mentioning again.
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Editorial: Seizure of AP phone records insult to independent press
This amounts to spying on an American news organization -- common practice in dictatorships but scary conduct in a democratic system that prizes the public value of an independent watchdog press.
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Google shuts down SMS search, angers people who had forgotten it existed
Instead of texting back search results, Google responds with a short message noting that the service "has been shutdown" (sic) and that you can continue to search the Web by visiting google.com (duh).
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Walking by Faith
Last week I wrote about waiting on the Lord. I really needed to hear from the Lord, but all I was receiving was “wait.” I really don’t like to wait, but it is important to give God the opportunity to work things out before we proceed. After we wait on God, the next thing we are going to be asked to do is to walk by faith. That means that God is only going to reveal one step at a time, which is almost as much fun as “wait.”
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Jettie Parker
Jettie Frick Parker, 89, of Albemarle died at 2 a.m. Friday, May 3, 2013, in Trinity Place, Albemarle.
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Always Learning
I am teaching a class this semester that I haven’t taught in over a dozen years. Although I have taught it before, it still has a feeling of being new. The curriculum has been updated, and I must spend a good bit of time reviewing and preparing for the lesson each day. It doesn’t surprise me that often that I will come across something I didn’t know. The other day I made a big fuss about learning something new. The kids had a good time with that; their teacher learned something new.
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West of Memphis: My Favorite Documentary Gets a New Partner
I saw “Paradise Lost: The Child Murders of Robin Hood Hills” when it played in theaters in 1996. At some point during the viewing, it became my favorite documentary. A position it has held for nearly 20 years. I own a copy of it, along with the two sequels “(Paradise Lost 2: Revelations” and “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory).” Many know part of the story told in the films; it is a story that everyone should witness.
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Childhood bullying linked to adult psychological disorders
A significant study from Duke provides the best evidence we’ve had thus far that bullying in childhood is linked to a higher risk of psychological disorders in adulthood. The results came as a surprise to the research team.
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Saturday night with ‘The Rocketman’ Elton John
The Grateful Dead had its Deadheads.
Jimmy Buffett has his Parrotheads.
I guess Elton John has his … Eltonites? -
Spring Cleaning
Last week during spring break I spent a lot of time catching up on my sleep. My wife and I also worked on a number of different projects around the house. Today I headed back to work and can reflect back on a productive week around the house. While there are other things that we wished we could have gotten done, we both feel good about the progress we made around here.
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Celebrating small businesses and continuing new ways of communicating
