For most of us, the winter holidays are a time to relax and enjoy the company of friends and family. People tend to put forth a bit more generosity in the spirit of “goodwill towards men.” However, in the midst of this year’s holiday cheer, the nation was shocked and horrified by the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting on Dec. 14.
The senseless murder of twenty children will always be a horrifying and baffling situation, but the sting of such violence was perhaps made more powerful by its sharp contrast with the season. Even over 2,000 miles away in Idaho, the shooting was at the forefront of many of our minds, especially as many of us wondered how the families of the victims would make it through “the most wonderful time of the year” without the most wonderful people in their lives.
Though many of us here were shocked, confused and horrified by the Sandy Hook shooting, our complete removal from the situation made it easier to carry on with our lives. Unfortunately, some were not so lucky and won’t be for some time.
As I’m sure dozens of other students, staff and faculty members do, I have strong ties to the east coast. Several of my relatives live in Connecticut, so I wasn’t sure what to expect when I flew “back home” during the break. I certainly didn’t expect to be a mere seven miles from the site of one of the worst shootings in U.S. history.
I spent a week in Bethel, Conn., passing road signs for Newtown, reading articles in the local newspaper and seeing countless displays of support for the small neighboring town. It was an eerie experience and I felt almost as if I was intruding on something private.
It was relieving to see people going about their business but it was also quite surreal. When I finally ventured into Newtown, it was too dark to see many of the memorials commemorating the victims. I’ve never driven through a town before and looked at each home wondering if they had just lost a child or family member. The experience was sobering.
Still, the handful of people I saw in Newtown weren’t the morose, grim faces I expected. Employees at a local pizza place were friendly and warm, and other patrons carried on conversations as if their town, friends and families hadn’t just made global news for the past week and a half.
It was an interesting lesson in resilience, and a peculiar experience that will stay with me. Though it still comes up in conversation, the shooting seems to have largely left the forefront of most minds in our area. It seemed as though Newtown residents, like the rest of the nation, have tried to carry on normally in the face of tragedy, although it will be much harder for them.
It might be easy for those of us without ties to Newtown to move on until the next incident of violence on a mass scale occurs. Still, I hope we can all keep tragedies like this and the (unfortunately) many others in mind and remember those who can’t just move on.
Next Post
To Withdraw or Not
Wed Jan 23 , 2013
Spring semester is officially in full swing, and as such students are suddenly trying to adapt to new schedules, new material, new homework and often new teachers as well. With that much going on all at once, it is guaranteed that some students will consider dropping, withdrawing, or perhaps even […]
