Saturday, December 15, 2012

On Second Thought

Yesterday I was filled with anger and stunned by the senseless and unspeakable horror visited on the people of Sandy Hook/Newtown, Connecticut.  Now I am overcome by an intense sadness and a profound sense of loss.  I do not know anyone who lives there, certainly not any of the victims, yet there is a sense impression that all has changed.

Most summers over the past quarter of a century, as we made our way to and from the lake cottage in Maine, we have become accustom to stopping in Newtown  to gas up and to have a bite to eat.  It has always been a convenient place, a friendly place, to take a breather after making our way around NYC, on the northbound trip, or to savor one last breath of New England air and Yankee tranquility before navigating the Big Apple on the way home.  I recall in particular an ill-fated attempt to eat at the charming Sandy Hook Diner last New Year's Eve day only to find it closed so that everyone could be home with their families to ring in the new year.  It is less than a half mile from the school where yesterday’s massacre unfolded.  Who knew what the new year would bring to this quiet and pleasant community.  Sally Ann and I tried again in October on our way home from Maine.   We found it closed again late on a Sunday afternoon.  But we always find a place to stretch our legs and seek a little nourishment for the road.

Now I will never be able to look at that charming rest haven the same way again.  Somehow evil and terror found their way here.  Our prayers go out to all the families, friends, and neighbors whose lives have been horribly changed forever.  We also pray for a nation that needs to wake up and make certain this never happens again.  We are all diminished by what has happened in Newtown.

Most of the victims were not just children . . . they were mostly six-year old children. Even as old as seven!!!   NRA - put that on your tote board. How do you sleep at night? Folks, it's time to stop being angry. It's time to take a stand. Make gun control the gold standard for weighing your choices in the future. If a politician won't stand up to the NRA, then he or she is not interested in taking this country back from the extremists, the survivalists, and those whose solutions to challenges and problems are only found through the barrel of a gun.  Wake up America!

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