Sunday, December 16, 2012

THE SANTA CLAUS CHALLENGE

As I look at this picture for the latest RCS challenge, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude that my children are alive.  I was trying to finish up this page when the horrific news hit the TV yesterday about the tragedy in Newtown, CT. These girls are my life.  I remember their first day of kindergarten.....they were so excited to ride the big girl bus.  They came home with little tags attached to their clothes that said, "I live at.....I ride bus..." in case they got lost.  As the weeks progressed, they came home singing silly songs, showing me beautiful pieces of artwork they created....My younger daughter even started reading on her own very early into her Kindergarten experience.  It was magical to watch them grow.  At Christmas time, they were so excited to visit Santa in their lunchroom (a tradition being featured in this layout).  As they progressed through the grades, my overwhelming sense of worry began to subside.  Nothing bad could happen to them at elementary school, right?....That all changed yesterday.  In summary, this was an extremely bittersweet page to make for this challenge.  I am so thankful that this morning I got to wake up with my two beautiful little girls alive and excited for Christmas.  I am so heartbroken for the innocence lost in this country.  And mostly, I am so incredibly saddened for the families who are facing the unimaginable in the upcoming days, weeks, months, years ahead......I guess in the words of the sticker found at the bottom of my page, we have to believe......Believe that something good will come from this sickening act of violence.  A colleague of mine posted this on her facebook page yesterday, and I think it's a good way to end this blog entry:
"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.’ To this day, especially in times of ‘disaster,’ I remember my mother’s words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers - so many caring people in this world.”
— Mister Rogers

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