sigh

Yesterday my student teacher said, "I read that article about the shooting in Nashville.  I knew I shouldn't read it."

I said, "I know.  But you couldn't not read it?"

She said, "Yes."

Three nine year old children were shot and killed and we spend our days with 8 and 9 year old children.

More children die from gun violence than any other cause now.  I guess it would be different if there was a powerful lobby of we-don't-want-to-use-carseats-and-seatbelts people donating millions of dollars to political campaigns.  Since there isn't such a lobby, we've managed to pass laws to make children safer in cars.

We are unable/unwilling to protect them when they are at school.  Same goes for the teachers.

Thoughts and prayers; you're on your own.

I would never bring up these shootings with my students and I hope they don't find out either.  The smartest of them would realize it could happen anywhere; it could happen to us.  We have our facade of lockdown drills, but we are sitting ducks.

I'll just do the only things I know how to do.  I'll pray.  I'll keep showing up.  I'll read aloud to them and keep an eagle eye at recess.  I'll turn one end of the jumprope and teach them jumprope chants I knew in elementary school.

I'll vote.