trying to make sense out the senseless

SOTD: Gary Jules - 'Mad World'

It's hard to find a place to start. I've been in a preoccupied cloud of distractions for the last 48 hours and it's only in the last hour or so that I've become aware of the events that took place in Tuscon yesterday.

From what I've learned, a 22 year old guy who had been kicked out of community college purchased a gun from a sportsman's warehouse in November and planned his attack carefully. Evidence shows that he had attended a 'Congress on the Corner' event previously, but the event yesterday was the culmination of weeks of planning and preparing for what would become a horrific event. His intended target, the democrat representative, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords.

Unfortunately, the gunman hit not only his target, but several others. The Congresswoman took a bullet through her brain and it is unclear how she might recover from her injury. At this moment, there are 6 confirmed deaths; the most shocking for me, a little girl, Christina Green, who was born on September 11, 2001. The girl, newly elected to her schools Student Council, reportedly attended the event because she was interested in government and politics. 

I hate stories like this. Because I realize they aren't just stories. These are events that forever alter every life connected to them. It's hard not to think back to Virgina Tech and the events of April 16, 2007. I'll never forget that day and the days that followed. I was sitting at work with my TV turned to CNN, as usual, and the story broke. I watched in disbelief, praying that the reporters had it all wrong. I was praying that there was some catastrophic misunderstanding and the reports that dozens of students and teachers had been attacked was simply wrong. As the hours went on my prayers went unanswered. When I left work that day details had started to solidify, but it was still impossible to rationalize, to understand how anyone could make sense of such horror. 

The following day, I spent most of my time in the waiting room of the Comprehensive Breast Center (as I had done annually since having my tumor removed in 2002). As you can imagine, VT was the only topic the news was covering, it was all over the newspapers and it was the only topic of conversation among the fifteen or so women waiting in that room that day. I, of course, was the youngest person in the room by at least a decade, and for some reason, seemed like a wealth of knowledge for many of the older women in the room. I guess being glued to my television and internet since the tragic events were made public gave me some sense of being informed.

A couple of years later, while talking to a friend who produces news segments for one of the morning shows, I learned an even more horrific account of what happened in those days surrounding the massacre. She told me about what she experienced the day I was stuck in the waiting room. As is common with television, you need people related to a story to tell a story, which is how my friend ended up on the front porch of the home of one of the wounded professors. Moments before she rang the door bell to ask his wife for an interview her phone rang, it was her boss informing her that the professor had just succumbed to his injuries. At the end of the very brief call her boss gave his final request, to get the interview. I can't imagine what must have gone through her mind in that moment. Being every bit the professional she is, she rang the door bell and preceded to get the interview.

I know that what happened at Virginia Tech and what took place yesterday are enormously different, but the fallout is virtually the same. Lives have been taken. Lives have been changed. The common thread is the need for civility. 

There's been a lot of commentary on the possible political motives behind this attack. Is it the state's recent and controversial stand on immigration? Could it be the work of a political movement (a la, the Tea Party)? I'm not sure. But if this action is a response to the political climate, we need to take a long hard look at what is being done to build partisan unity rather than the numerous ways each party has attempted to mark their proverbial territory. Politicians need to own their responsibility here and avoid using this as an opportunity for political gain. I don't like seeing images of Sarah Palin's 'cross-hairs map' and being reminded of her rally cry 'don't retreat, reload.' This isn't the time or the place. 

As I go to sleep tonight, I will be praying for all of the victims that are still trying to make it through the events of yesterday's rampage as well as the family, friends and professionals that will be going through the recovery with them. And for those leaders who were not physically effected by the shooting, I pray they receive wisdom to govern our nation toward unity and safety. If you feel inclined to join me, I invite you to do so.