Years don’t erase the memories…
It’s been enough years now that they don’t think about it every day anymore. The nightmares return every March since 1998 because there is no way a day like that can ever be erased.
A mass murder of four innocent young kids and a teacher…nine others were shot that day. Over the years those physical wounds healed.
It was Jonesboro, Arkansas, 1998.
I spent weeks in Jonesboro covering that story. I met some of the most caring, compassionate families during that time. It too was a small community that rallied to put their arms around the students of Westside Middle School, families who lost loved ones and the town as a whole that sank into sorrow and depression over the quiet little place, they called home, that was now on the map, designated by this disgusting act.
The town held vigils, churches opened their doors and the people walked-in, looking for guidance and any explanation that would help them understand how an 11-year old and a 13-year old, armed with hand guns and semi-automatic weapons, could shoot to kill, friends.
Teddy bears and candles turned into memorials and at that time, school shootings were new to this country, so along with saddness there was shock that this kind of act would happen in this country.
Sadly, since then, we’ve witnessed too many repeat performances.
So I wasn’t surprised when I got a text this weekend from a woman in Jonesboro, I’ve stayed in touch with over the years. I met her in the parking lot that day, 14 years ago, as she hugged and held her little boy who had tried to protect his classmates from the bullets that day. The memories, the horror had come back in waves.
That little boy is now the father of a beautiful little girl and my friend, in the running to be one of the best grandmothers of all time, in-part because of what she has experienced. She appreciates how fragile life is…14 years ago, she learned that lesson in a flash.
December 19, 2012 @ 9:52 am
This unspeakable event confirms that evil does walk among us. BUT, it has illuminated that in spite of the evil, good still reins supreme. A local woman was home recovering from knee surgery, discovered an old classmate in California on Facebook and learned from him that he felt the need to do something for Newtown. He found a Newtown general store, called them, gave them his credit card number and purchased 100 cups of coffee to be given to anyone coming in the store. So she picked up the idea, called the store, same scenario and purchased enough candy for 400 children to be distributed…just a little treat for them. The idea has spread across the country and Newtown is being beseiged by goodness from strangers. Just a small gesture by them to let Newtown know that they are not alone even though it may feel like it.
Why is it that evil is always front and center on the nightly news but goodness and good deeds are never mentioned or illuminated unless they are part of the narrative of the evil story? I have emailed our local TV channels and paper to highlight one good deed per day but the good deeds are edited out of station’s nightly broadcast (PS..in Atlanta, our local news begins at 4:30pm and lasts until 7:00pm…the same crime stories over and over and over and not one good deed highlighted in 2 1/2 hours of crime, corruption, sports and weather). Is there a special room where lobotomies are performed on producers, news readers, etc so that the common sense part of their brains are removed? They all seem perfectly normal off camera..
December 19, 2012 @ 12:42 pm
Al, Maybe it’s my proximity to Sandy Hook (20 miles south of it), but our newspapers and even local TV & radio stations have been including stories about the wonderful, generous deeds that have been done on behalf of the town. Maybe Atlanta should consult with l’il ole Hartford & New Haven CT. We are all collectively so devastated on the one hand and inspired on the other hand. Thank you for reaching out!
December 19, 2012 @ 3:09 pm
Judie…I hope that your local news media will continue to highlight the good people and good deeds for a long time to come. The quiet heroes and heroines; the selfless strangers who saw a need and took action; the prayers; the memorials all serve to show our humanity. Maybe the attention span of your local media will be forever elongated but in today’s 3o second segments and “get it here first and all day”, I fear that so much of the good will be easily forgotten and replaced by the robbery of a convenience store du jour. We share your grief and devastation and like you we are so inspired by the quiet heroines who ran towards the shooter to save others. Prayers to you all at this terrible time.
December 18, 2012 @ 8:10 pm
It is just not possible to ever make sense of these horrors. Innocent little children and the teachers that were there to open their minds and help guide them to the future….going about their day. My heart is so broken for these families.
December 18, 2012 @ 6:30 pm
Thanks for sharing. Somehow this gives me hope. We’re all about lifting above the turmoil and despair of chronic,spreading disease. Not all cancers attack within.