It has taken me all weekend to be able to sit down and put thoughts to keyboard, so to speak. The tragedy that has occurred is so heartbreaking, I find it too hard to convey what I am feeling. I know it is same feeling everyone has.

That night, I kissed my son goodnight and gave him the biggest hug. He felt the tear on my cheek from the sadness for the other mothers & fathers who wouldn't be hugging their children anymore and he asked me, "Mama, why are you crying? I love you, so no reason to cry!" and he hugged me back so tight. 

I went and knelt by the Christmas tree, prayed so hard and then broke down and sobbed. I cried so hard for those parents. I tried to picture the sweet faces of those babies and wondered how anyone could look into those little faces and pull the trigger.

Like others, I was so angry, so hurt, so devastated. How do we keep our children safe? I didn’t want to let my son out of sight. So I turned to the only thing I knew to do and that was to pray.  

My prayer now is - Thank you God for blessing me, please protect my son from harm and please comfort those who are experiencing my biggest fear.

There are many heartfelt tributes floating around the web as well as good advice on how to talk to your children about scary events, in addition to advice on how we can keep them safe.

The one piece I can give is no matter what age your children may be, always make it easy for your children to come to you to talk. Let them know that when it feels important, to let you know that they need to talk. Then make sure to stop everything, sit down and truly listen. Address their fears, don’t dismiss them and help guide them through. As parents, we have so many responsibilities, including all we do to keep them safe, but we also need to support their emotions and give them a safe place to express them.

Hold them tight and tell them how much you love them everyday – it never gets old. 

Prayers and best wishes to you and your families,

Julie