It's been a rough week for me emotionally, the Newtown shooting is really pulling at my heart.  I've been praying for those people multiple times a day since it happen.  I feel so helpless, what else can most of us do besides pray and donate money?  I've never experienced something so distant causing me to have such strong emotions.  I want to hug and kiss my kids just a little tighter...I get to have them for Christmas.  I can't imagine having presents hidden in my house for my children and their not going to be there; walking in their bedrooms or getting up in the morning to get them ready for school only to be reminded that they will never be home again.  I keep remembering my children when they were 5 and 6, I get to have happy, loving memories.  My children got to grow beyond kindergarten safely.  My heart goes out to the parents who lost their little ones.  Do we wish them a Merry Christmas knowing that it's not going to be so Merry this year? 

The teachers in Newtown are amazing heroes, they protected their kids the best they could and some, along with the principle and others, lost their lives protecting the little ones.  I've always felt teachers should be among the highest paid and respected in our communities, they are teaching our children, out future.  They do so much more than just teach, they end up being counselors, providers for those who don't have, a shoulder to cry on and now have proven to be heroes and protectors.  I have the highest respect for teachers in our communities.

No one is going to walk away from this situation without being effected.  I've paid attention to news stories, both mainstream and otherwise, and the changes this shooting is going to have in individuals, communities and the country as a whole are so obvious.  The kindergartners and others who experienced this are going to be forever changed. I heard someone read a letter that a child wrote to his dead best friend.  A Sunday school teacher had children missing from her class while other children had a hard time being there or simply couldn't go.  What about children in other activities with their friends such as scouts, dance, sports, etc.  Can you imagine being a little 5 year old and part of your normal routine is to go next door and play with your friend or have your buddy spend the night on the weekends and now that friend is gone never to walk the earth again?  Everyone needs to keep a close eye on the mental and psychological health or each other, the adults and children.  Losing someone your expect to lose is hard enough.  Losing a mass group of people in a way that takes the safety in safe places away and your security in you community is now questionable can really destroy a human being.

Among the heroes in the situation, Bikers have my respect and thanks.  Being from the Midwest, growing up in the Chicago suburbs and now living in the Milwaukee area, I already have a deep respect for bikers, it's in my blood.  Seeing that bikers went to Newtown and formed a human barrier to keep the crazy Westboro Baptist Church from picketing at the funerals and vigils just increases my list of personal heroes.  I wish I could shake every one of their hands and say thank you, they displayed strength, compassion, courage and most of all, protected those who couldn't protect themselves from bullets from being victims once again.  They made sure the families and loved ones of the victims had the opportunity to pay their last respects and give the ones who passed on a proper funeral.  Thank you to all the bikers, I will always respect and love you for what you did.

The Westboro Baptist Church...ugh...some of the most evil, closed minded, unloving people I have ever heard of in my life.  I really feel the need to remind everyone not to judge all Baptists from Westboro's ignorant actions of hate.  I come from a long line of Southern Baptists (I am now Buddhist)  and not one of them support or agree with Westboro's actions.  Westboro is an insult to Baptists everywhere.  I don't care how holier-than-thou you think you are, there is NEVER a reason to picket funerals or vigils.  They say God sent the shooter in response to Connecticut's Gay Marriage Law.  Who in their right mind would link Gary Marriage with the deaths of so many innocent people?  James Dobson also used the deaths as a platform for his views on Gay Marriage, abortion and other issues. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/16/westboro-baptist-church-picket-connecticut-school-shooting_n_2312186.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/17/james-dobson-connecticut-shooting- gay-marriage_n_2318015.html

What the hell is wrong with these cold hearted opportunists?  Vigils, funerals and horrible, tragic events are NOT a platform to cram your beliefs and cruelty down our throats.  How can you look a parent in the eye that just lost a child and has had to be strong for their other children, family members and community and tell them that their child was murdered because of all these political and religious issues.  God did not kill those children, what the hell is wrong with these idiots?  Westboro Baptist Church, in my opinion, is a HATE group.  Their actions have stirred up negative emotions, anger and hate.  Nothing good came from them as well as James Dobson. 

I have had my own struggles through this, I've had to turn off the TV, avoid articles, remove myself from conversations, etc.  to help myself deal with this tragedy.  The fact that I can do these things is a blessing, the parents and loved ones of the victims don't have those options.  They can't remove themselves from the situation, they can't escape.  There is no break from the grieving, funeral planning, supporting each other, etc.  They can't drive down the street and not see reminders of that horrible day.

I wish I could do more than pray and donate.