The Pain After Such an Event Envelops Us

These school shootings are devastating—the horrific loss of life this week in Uvalde, Texas, cuts close to home in several ways.  I lived in Uvalde as a sophomore in high school.  That’s where I got my driver's license.  That’s where I had my first date.  I played varsity volleyball for Uvalde High School. That’s where I learned to water ski.  I had a great friend, Cheryl, while I lived there.  Her father was patient and taught me to kick off a ski (meaning I’d end up skiing on one ski) and slalom (you start with only one ski).

Cheryl and I had become close during those six months, and when it was time for me to move to the following location, she gave me her beautiful blue topaz ring (I wondered if she asked her mother if she could give away that ring), which I wore for twenty years.  It still sits in my jewelry box as a continual memory of our friendship.

Those of you who have never been to or heard of Uvalde, Texas, is a small town located about eighty miles west of San Antonio and fifty-four miles northeast of the Texas-Mexico border.  The 2020 census showed a little over 15,000 residents.  One of the things I remember about Uvalde was how friendly the people were and how they never cut down their big oak trees.  Instead, they built the roads around each side of the tree.

Dolph Briscoe was from Uvalde and the governor of Texas when I lived there.  You might also know Matthew McConaughy, the actor, also from Uvalde.

When these events occur, it brings us to our knees.  We ache for those involved, the children and their families, and the teachers and staff at the school.  The community suffers the grief, and anyone who listens to the news and sees the video of all involved.

My family and I also went through several school shootings while we lived in the Denver metro area.  First, the Columbine High School shootings occurred in April of 1999.  Two senior boys killed twelve classmates and one teacher, the deadliest school shooting in US history.  One of the young girls sitting outside the school as the boys approached was shot and paralyzed.  Anne Marie was a member of our congregation.  Many schools in the Littleton area, both my daughters’ schools, were immediately put on lockdown.

Second, the Arapahoe High School shooting happened on December 13, 2013.  The shooter, also a high school senior, was brilliant.  His debating skills were top-notch, and he had secured a scholarship to college for debate.  He was the president of the debate team at Arapahoe, and he and his sister participated in the presidential town hall meetings asking questions to the candidates.  His family belonged to our church when Karl was young, and my oldest daughter babysat him as an infant.  I cried for hours for his parents and sister.  How could this happen?  Karl left a diary that noted he was bullied in elementary school, which had a lasting effect on him.

Unsure why these high school shootings continue to plague our country, I feel we need to put God at the center of our world.  If we all remember, the first settlers in our country came to establish freedom of religion.  As a descendant of the Mayflower, I know this was the fact.

If you would like to research how you might contribute to helping this cause, check out:

• https://everytownresearch.org/report/preventing-gun-violence-in-american-schools/
• https://violence.chop.edu/types-violence-involving-youth/school-shootings/preventing-school-shootings
• https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/gun-violence-prevention

Life is a complex maze we all must maneuver through.  It is essential for us, as adults, to listen to the children and young adults and give them sound advice.  Having a mentor in those high school years can be vital, especially if they don’t feel they have an adult to talk with.

Everyone, please have a blessed and safe Memorial Day weekend.

All my best,

Julie