Light A Candle for Change

The storm, that we were primed for, didn't materialize as they predicted.  Not a foot of snow, but a trace, with high winds that lasted two days.  The howling in the night sounded like a train rolling in . . .

My last two children are another year older.  They had wonderful birthdays, December 18th and 21st , celebrating in style with their friends. Both sounded so happy, especially since the end of the world was cancelled.

Every day since the end of semester, I have been dedicating myself to getting it together, bit by bit. 

Since the news of Sandy Hook, we have written  letters and signed petitions.  Do not for a minute believe that it's only gun control.  We need both gun control and strong mental health support services.  I was so frightened by the commentary regarding  Asperger's, which  I know will be translated in  the wide-sweeping generalization made by uninformed Americans  who will assume that what they hear on Fox news is absolute truth and they will carry forth the spinning narrative that people with Asperger's are potential "shooters."
Please stop.  This is NOT  the case.  We need to be sure all of our citizens are protected, young and old.  We need to have strong mental health support services. Far too many people slip through the cracks.  We need to think about our culture and its portrait of violence that is constantly in our entertainment.  What is that all about?  What would happen if we had a year without violence?
What if people decided to give violence up, the video games, the movies and TV shows-- anything that has a gun and substitutes with some outdoor activities, or art experiences, or family reading nights, or community activities.  I wonder what would happen?  This does exist in our schools, libraries, town halls, but what if it was a commitment made first by families, who would be supported by the existing programs and expand from there.  It certainly would make us more person to person.  We would get to know each other. . . . it could be a grassroots movement. We need to start taking this seriously.  We have to push for this.  They don't have this problem in Europe. It's true we're a young country, but we can be informed by Europe's long, brutal history.  We can see the shortcut, without having to learn the lesson the hard way. 

I'm lighting a candle for change.