January 13, 2009
bja: Pictures like this never fail to bring me back down to Earth. I couldn’t imagine experiencing things like this as a child, let alone as an adult. Perspective is sobering. When I was a kid I used to play this game where my bed was a boat at sea during a horrible storm.  I would take all my dolls and stuffed animals and tuck them into the blankets, one by one.  I would hold each of them and kiss them, calm them down and carefully stow them beneath the blankets.  I would do this to each and everyone of them…the small Strawberry Shortcake figurines, my life-size Cabbage Patch baby, even my gigantic stuffed bear…I would save them all from the storm and make sure they were safe. Two years ago, one of my students, 13,  was jumped in a park and had two ribs broken by a baseball bat.  He waited until after school was over to tell me this…being a tough guy and all.    A year later, after risking my job by telling my kids that they can never ever have unprotected sex ever ever, he came to me after school and asked how to use a condom, because his two older brothers (who had gotten their girlfriends pregnant at 15 and 16) told him condoms were stupid.  I told him. I want to save all of these children from the storm.  I want to kiss them and calm them down and safely stow them under the blankets.  I want to be their protector. We cannot ever loose compassion for humanity.  We must do the right thing, always.

bja:

Pictures like this never fail to bring me back down to Earth. I couldn’t imagine experiencing things like this as a child, let alone as an adult. Perspective is sobering.

When I was a kid I used to play this game where my bed was a boat at sea during a horrible storm.  I would take all my dolls and stuffed animals and tuck them into the blankets, one by one.  I would hold each of them and kiss them, calm them down and carefully stow them beneath the blankets.  I would do this to each and everyone of them…the small Strawberry Shortcake figurines, my life-size Cabbage Patch baby, even my gigantic stuffed bear…I would save them all from the storm and make sure they were safe.

Two years ago, one of my students, 13,  was jumped in a park and had two ribs broken by a baseball bat.  He waited until after school was over to tell me this…being a tough guy and all.    A year later, after risking my job by telling my kids that they can never ever have unprotected sex ever ever, he came to me after school and asked how to use a condom, because his two older brothers (who had gotten their girlfriends pregnant at 15 and 16) told him condoms were stupid.  I told him.

I want to save all of these children from the storm.  I want to kiss them and calm them down and safely stow them under the blankets.  I want to be their protector.

We cannot ever loose compassion for humanity.  We must do the right thing, always.

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