Love  hard and Be kind

In light of this weeks events. I feel compelled to share my point of view. A perspective of love and motherhood. It has taken me this entire week to absorb the tragedy of what occurred on October 2nd, 2017, the Las Vegas massacre. With both a multitude of family and friends living there, a swollen heart is nothing close to what the real survivors of this horrific event must feel and have to deal with.

My initial reaction to things like this is to just go numb. Tune it out, turn it off, shut it down. It’s too much for me. I get overwhelmed with fear and anxiety for my kids. I mean, this is their world. My job is to help them learn how to navigate through it, thoughtfully and successfully. Being a parent in today’s world means numb is not an option. I had to talk with my kids about these things. That is a hard thing to do. Which is really so insignificant to the families, friends, loved ones who were physically impacted.

There I was, at the dinner table Tuesday night, a mother trying to explain how cruel the world can be.

All day Tuesday I tried to wrap my head around how fast we got here. I mean, I’m 35 and my childhood school drills were basically for an earthquake that wasn’t likely to happen. Hiding under a bathroom sink is nothing compared to what my kids are being trained for in school. My kids hide under desks and barricade themselves in their classrooms. Mass shootings are happening too often. This is heartbreaking. How can I even articulate the fear I have for my kids youth, without disrupting their childhood? Is it even possible? How did we get here?

How can we make the world a better place?

Our conversation started with kindness. Being kind is the easiest task we are given, daily. Kindness should be on your list of things to be every damn day! But recognizing where kindness is needed the most can be the hardest part of our day. When someone is being bullied, it takes a brave kindness to step in. When someone is struggling to do something, it takes a certain kindness to offer our assistance. Kindness is also knowing when someone wants to complete something on their own. We need to be able to assess when we can and should be of help. Never stop being willing to help.

We also talked about recognizing the signs of someone who needs more kindness. Finding these moments to step up, be kind, or report suspicious activity, could potentially save lives. We sat around our dinner table Tuesday night talking about how important of a job it is to try and recognize the signs. We talked about negative conversations, a gloomy outlook, and other odd behaviors that could lead to potential negative situations. We no longer live in a world where we can ignore these things. And as much as I hate to talk about them with my kids, I have too. Numb is not an option. It is my job as a parent to help my kids successfully navigate through this life and live a life worth loving. We can’t be numb, and we have to raise the next generation to be aware and share kindness. I encourage you to have similar talk with your kids.

You can also read my dear friend Amy’s thoughts on kindness in the world – Especially if after reading this, you want to make a political comment. Don’t do it, I won’t approve it. She has a great poster we all need to print.