A Ribbon

Yesterday as I walked through downtown Cork I passed a tree filled with yellow ribbons.  I noticed a sign that said they were for people being remembered.  I made a small donation to the group doing it and wrote on my ribbon 'Victims of Newtown Shooting.'  When they clipped mine on they clipped it so the writing was on the inside.  I don't blame them, it might not be the most pleasant thing for people to see during the holiday season, but I had felt the urge to honor those who died in the shootings in some way while I was here.  Much like it was on 9/11 it has been a weird experience to be here when such a tragedy happened at home.

My Ribbon

I was very affected by it.  I'm not sure why.  Perhaps it was because twenty of those who died were only six or seven.  Perhaps it's because I'm missing my loved ones now.  Perhaps it's because of the acts of heroism that many of the school's staff displayed.  Perhaps it's because I saw my president cry.  Perhaps it's because it was the second deadliest mass shooting in all of our history.  Perhaps it's because gun violence and severe mental illness are problems that our country is not addressing.  Perhaps it's because I know those who died are only a small percentage of those who are killed by guns in the United States each year.  Likely, it was all of these.

I'm sorry for this being a very somber post, but I wouldn't have felt right not mentioned it at all.