Days Like Today...

Another senseless act of violence today - Patriots Day here in Massachusetts - better known as "Marathon Monday".

My husband and I spent the day blissfully ignorant while helping my in-laws with a yard project. It wasn't until about 4:30pm when my step-son called to ask us about the explosions at the Boston Marathon that we had any idea that it wasn't just another Monday.

We snapped on the radio in the truck on the way home and listened as the details started to take shape.

What is wrong with this world? Why do some people turn to violence against innocence to make their point? If they were indeed trying to make a point, what was it? Who was it?

Posts on Facebook ranged from offering prayers, rides out of the city, blood donation to the victims and support for their families to quoting Toby Keith's song "We'll put a boot in their ass, it's the American way..."

We need to understand what the Hell is happening but in the mean time, here is what I think needs to change in this world.

Parents need to parent. They need to shield their children from the evil in the world - not just the gruesome gore on the news but the crap on TV and video games that they are exposed to for more hours a day than they spend in school. They need to teach their children right from wrong from the moment the child can first grasp the concept. They need to teach true tolerance and love for others by exhibiting it themselves. They need to engage their children in the world instead of keeping them in insulated ivory towers where everyone wins, parents fix things the first second things go wrong at a normal childhood development level, and everyone is homogenous. They need to instill a sense of responsibility and pride in their children that shows up in every facet of their lives - not just on a sports field or in a classroom. They need to encourage voluntarism, participation in real life, and commitment.

I firmly believe that if kids could be raised this way globally, the need to piss on each others' furniture and commit random acts of violence would be alleviated and possibly replaced with random acts of kindness.

My reaction to today's senseless act of violence is a combination of sadness, disgust, anger, and fear. That is NOT what I want in my life or in the lives of the young people growing into this world we are making.

Join me in answering the following questions for yourself because they are bouncing around in my head and I intend to make a step toward acting on and answering each one:

How do I change it? What can I do?