Monday, June 13, 2016

Quiet, But Here

What a way to come back from being MIA. 


I had to re-write and re-write this re-entry post, and while I don't think any words will do justice to the atrocity that just happened in Orlando I stand by my previous posts regarding taking action (here in 2012 with Newtown, here in 2015 with Paris and again here with San Bernadino). You can take action right here, right now:


{Image source: Huffington Post}
Someone on my timeline expressed how odd it is with all that is going on from the Stanford rape and now the shootings to wake up each day and try to go on about your life as normal. It's almost like an escalation of sorts of recent events this spring starting with the gorilla outrage. How long ago it seems. We were nearly collectively outraged and then our attention moved to the rape and now Orlando. It feels embarrassing that we were so embattled over the gorilla incident as a society. I agree, it feels strange to go on about life as normal, but I do think we must. Instead of being paralyzed by fear, I find myself wanting to provide a sense of normalcy especially for my children. As Rick Steves expressed when the Paris attacks happened:

"About the right response to terrorism, I believe we owe it to the victims of this act not to let the terrorist win by being terrorized. That’s exactly the response they are hoping for. Sure, it’s natural for our emotions to get the best of us. But, especially given the impact of sensational media coverage, we need to respond intelligently and rationally."

Up here in New Hampshire it's easy to be complacent and feel so far removed from the action happening in much larger cities and while part of me breathes a sigh of relief that I'm no longer raising children in NYC although I thoroughly enjoyed my time there, a part of me still fights to be connected to the pulse of activity and activism there. I don't want to ever have tunnel vision on "just my 4 and no more," but I also understand the importance of raising the next generation.

Here's what we've been up to since my last post 12 days ago...

Participating in the tactical urbanism project in my community:


Saying farewell to sweet friends:


Getting together with old friends:  


Preparing for the end of Kindergaten including a gorgeous field trip to the Seacoast Science Center:





Being proud of my Wellesley sister...
Birthday parties including getting ready for Grayson's 2nd birthday:

This is why he's Darth Grayson!
Transitions:


Enjoying Portsmouth (including Market Square Day):


And I have this on repeat, and it's still true decades later. 

Love and Peace,