Being Safe in an UNsafe world

April 16, 2008

So many things are beyond our control. Cancer strikes, or a super-flu. Someone isn't paying attention while they are behind the wheel of a car, or is impaired in some way. Disaster can strike. And it does. How do we live in this dangerous world? No matter what the laws are, what the rules of decent behavior, there are people who delight in breaking them. Who break them out of need, or ignorance or just because they can. And that doesn't even touch on natural disasters. Why do we not live in constant fear? How are we able to function at all?

OK, I realize that there ARE people who really don't function well - or at all - in the face of such danger and uncertainty. That reaction can hit any of us temporarily when a disaster strikes us or those near us. Still, most of us manage to get to work, and home again. We feed the family and relax a little and start new the next day.

A friend of mine wrote about a gun threat on the elementary school that her children go to, that was allegedly made by a middle school student. I read in the news about an elementary student who brought his uncle's guns to school in his pockets. He wasn't meaning anyone harm, but could have easily killed someone in play. Scary isn't it. Gun threats at schools are nothing new. They happened 30 years ago, and longer. Instantaneous relay of the news around the country and/or world is a lot newer. We hear about them more because we hear about a lot more of EVERYTHING. My friend was fearful for her children's safety, and who wouldn't be? She heard about the situation from the school the day after, which might seem like too little too late to her. On the other hand, the school should have been (and hopefully was) too busy taking care of the situation and the safety of the children in their care to alert the parents of the threat. Even if they HAD done that, it would have only made the situation much, much worse. Can you imagine the chaos of all those parents trying to come and get their children, and of COURSE they would! The school not wanting to let the children go anywhere that might be in the line of fire, and here are all these parents, even MORE people to keep safe, putting themselves in that potential harm's way. Can you tell I work in a school? Our school has planned and practiced for disaster, but I know that not all schools are so prepared. And there are some things that even planning and practice doesn't cover. Still, I understand her worry... and every parent has it. How do we keep our children safe. How do we protect those we would unhesitatingly give our lives for?

Sadly, the answer is we can't, always. We give them the best tools we have to cope with the world. We hope and we pray and we do what we can. We don't want them to be frightened and unable to face the world, so we have daily business, and we all go about it, and they learn that is what you do. Even when it isn't safe out there. Even when it would drive them and us mad to contemplate the possibilities too long. Even when the heroes who come to our rescue - if they can - are only as human as we are. Without the bad, you can't see the good. And we certainly don't want to give that up, do we...