33 dead, dozens injured

i hate hearing about school shootings. i'm sure most people do. it just hits me on so many levels.

first, it brings back all the memories of columbine. that tragedy affected all of us, who lived here during that time, pretty deeply. whenever a new school shooting occurs, it's hard not to relive that awful day.

i start thinking about the kids involved. not just the ones who are tragically killed, but the survivors and bystanders, too. how will their lives be forever changed because of one fateful day?

and then i think about my own kids as they are on a school campus most of the week. because of columbine, most high school campuses in this area have better security and more safeguards in place. of course, these do not guarantee the stop of a fatal rampage, but it does give students and parents a better sense of safety.

but the mass shootings that occurred on viginia tech's campus today made me think about my daughter as she is away at college. i'm sure that most students feel safe and secure as they live, play, study, and attend classes all in the same place. it's their home and the last thing you would think that could happen would be that someone would come in and start shooting people.

my daughter did call tonight and she was a little freaked out, asking what if it happens on her campus. it didn't help that a local news crew came in and interviewed some students, asking them such questions as, "what would you do if it happened here?" and "do you feel safe?" all i could do was to try to relieve her fears and let her know that the chances of it happening to her school were pretty slim. i also told her that now would be a good time to think about what she and her roommates would do if something like this happened.

that's that's not actually all i can do. there will be more prayers lifted up with a focus on the safety of not just my kids, but all kids, when they're away from home and attending school.

by the way, this week marks the eighth anniversary of the columbine massacre.

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link of the day:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbine_High_School_massacre