Fear Not
There are many ways to judge the success or failure of a country. We can look at its economy, the strength of its military or the quality of its education. We can examine the soundness of our bridges or the smoothness of our highways. But what if we used a different standard? We should judge a nation by a simple metric: the number of weeping parents it allows, the small coffins it tolerates.
-Esau McCaulley the New York Times
The flag outside of Alexina’s kids’ school is flying at half mast this morning in honor of the victims of Monday’s school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee. It offers little condolence and nothing in terms of changing gun laws or protecting our children. It flies as a symbol of a broken country. As parents, we can hardly articulate how terrifying events like Monday’s shooting are. But as we move through the week, we are reminding ourselves to parent from a place of empowerment rather than fear. This is not a solution, but might help as we work toward finding one. It has certainly helped us in finding a way to get up and parent productively every day in a world of unknowns where fear so easily can take over if we let it. Maybe it will help you too.
Sending love and strength,
Emily & Alexina