This morning on the way to the bus stop, one of my boys said, “If a school shooter was on our campus, would I get in trouble if I killed him?”
So many thoughts went through my head…
How horrible it is that my son even has to consider this.
How tragic that our own kids can’t go to school with the freedom that we had as children.
How long has my son been thinking about this? Has he been laying awake at night wondering what he would do if a school shooter came on his campus? Has he played through the scenario over and over in his mind?
It breaks my heart that my teenage son even has to consider what he would do in this circumstance.
I don’t have any answers. I feel like this is such a complex problem that goes so much deeper than just weapons. It goes to the hearts and minds of our culture. It goes to the brokenness and mental illness that plagues our nation. It goes to the breakdown of the family unit, the weight and pressure of social media on our kids, the unlimited access to the world wide web, and all of the ramifications and unintended consequences of that.
Sigh.
Our kids are growing up in such a hard time. I wish I could see into the future to know how this will all pan out, and how best we can parent and navigate through this whole new generation of children who have never known a world without the Internet and smart phones and school shootings and hate.
My heart is heavy today for them.
Holding onto the hope and freedom this photo represents…carefree joy and simpler times, when our kids didn’t carry the weight of the world on their shoulders. 😢
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