snowflakes for sandy hook

It was a Friday afternoon.  Brian was off that day.  The older kids were at school and Layla was napping.  We were watching Ashlyn and she was eating lunch at the bar as Brian watched some History Channel show on tv.

I sat down at the computer to read the news.  The headline jumped out at me and I couldn't believe what I read.  26 dead at an elementary school.  An elementary school.  Connecticut.  Mother.  Teachers.  Children.  Children.  

I felt sick.  Tears began to flow as I continued reading about the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary.  I tried my best to hold it together in front of Ashlyn, and settled her on the couch with a blanket and a movie.  But as I turned on the tv upstairs to watch the news coverage I couldn't stop my tears.  I could not understand how someone could do such a terrible thing.  Innocent children's lives taken at a place where they were supposed to be safe.  I felt absolutely devastated at what those children and teachers had to endure during the last moments of their lives.  Thinking of those they left behind was almost worse.  How do you recover from something like that?  My heart was breaking for the families, the students who survived and the whole town.  But mostly for those kids.

It was a very somber weekend for me.  Amid the busy Christmas season- shopping, planning, anticipating, enjoying- were dozens of families who's lives had completely stopped and I thought of them often.  There was a point on Saturday night when Brian suggested we stop watching the  news coverage.  It was so heavy and so painful and would almost always bring tears.

The next Tuesday, one day before Christmas break started, McKay came home with an assignment to make a snowflake to send to Sandy Hook Elementary.  The idea was to have the school decorated with snowflakes- hundreds of them- for the returning students in January.

I don't know if that plan was realistic, or even possible, but at a time where people were desperate to help and do something, anything, we were happy to contribute.  I thought on this for several days- what could I do to help?  And I came up with only one thing: pray.  That was how my efforts to help would be most effective and appreciated.  So as a family and as individuals that's what we did.  We prayed.