Like many parents, Friday night I hugged my kids a little tighter, a little longer. Thankful I had the opportunity to do so. I regretted the previous week of arguing with Aidan,and letting the frustration win out.
The news of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary school is not easy to hear, to read, to think about. The children were just babies really- six and seven years old. Such a senseless catastrophe.
Is stricter gun control laws the answer? I don't know. Honestly, I am not a fan of guns. I know how to shoot a rifle. At least technically if not accurately... I could look up statistics on how many mass shooting there are in each country vs the strictness/ease of gaining firearms. I'm not going to do that.
Instead, I want everyone to think of how they treat their loved ones, class mates, students, coworkers, the checkers at the grocery store. Do we give them the respect they inherently deserve as humans? Or do we treat them as servants, lesser beings?
And think of your preconceived notions of mental illness. The stereotypes you hold. Do you think of am insane asylum? One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest? Personality disorders, depression, Schizophrenia... Let's start a discussion that will lead to an understanding of the intricacies and variances of the human mind. Let's stop attaching a social stigma to these disorders. Let's allow people with mental illness to function in a society that understands and supports them. Please, let's help and offer support for family members and caregivers and provide them with the resources they need to keep their loved ones healthy.
Can you imagine the stress, the daily fear, of raising a child, knowing he/she has a "problem" and not knowing how to get help? Or fearing the answer if you ask for help?
