“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers.  You will always find people who are helping.’” – Fred Rogers

As I type this post I am at my husband’s parents’ house in Connecticut.  I am only a few miles from where today’s horriffic shooting took place.  All day I’ve kept my emotions in check for the sake of my kids who are too young to understand what happened.  But, tonight after I tucked them into bed, I let myself cry for the first time all day.  I cried hard.

As a mother to three young children, of course I can’t help but imagine what the parents are going through.  The horror of never hugging my precious baby again.  The torture of such a brutal end to what surely were so many beautiful lives.  I wonder if some parents have a stash of Santa presents waiting in the closet for a child who didn’t come home today.  Did some families have special plans for tonight’s Chanukah celebration?  These are holidays that will never be the same.  Lives that will never, ever be the same.  It is more than my mind can process.

Like most people, I feel utterly powerless at a time like this.  What can I do to help?  How can I make it all better?  Can I invent a time machine so we can go back 12 hours and keep those babies alive?  I want to pack up my little family and move to a deserted island, just so I can keep them safe.  Because, these days it seems like there is no where to escape the maddness.

I don’t know how a family or community can survive this.  But, I know that there is more kindness than evil in the world.  It might seem like evil is taking over, but every day I witness a thousand small kindnesses, and those add up fast.  To honor the precious lives lost today, let’s all spread some extra kindness tomorrow.  Buy coffee for a stranger. Hold the door open for a few more shoppers at the mall.  Invite the new family over for dinner.  Compliment the cashier at the grocery store.  Be kind.

I find comfort in knowing that Newtown is a small town in a small state.  I know the community will gather around the victims’ families to offer support and love and homecooked meals.  The helpers will help.  The families will not be alone.