The role we play in the lives of our children really does have a lifelong impact. Whether we are good at it or not so good, will affect the adults our children grow up to become. It follows the rule of…cause and effect.
For most of us the path is unpredictable. It’s not like hitting a bull’s eye with a bow and arrow. Or is it?
I’ve never shot an arrow, but I imagine that when you pull the arrow back there’s a quiver in the movement which you must control so as to hit the target. That momentary quiver might be compared to the push and pull parents and children engage in as they strive to become independent. Not all “hit the mark” set by society.
Special needs children are doubly challenging for parents ill-equipped to manage their youngster’s early years, not to mention when they become teenagers and young adults. Their journey towards independence requires a lot more strength…to keep the bow from quivering so much that the arrow misses its mark altogether. More patience is required to keep a steady hand, no matter the repetitive practice involved.
Introducing guns into the mix is likely to upset the fine balance necessary in youngsters’ lives already compromised. Once they begin to think for themselves, they begin to make their own judgement calls.
A gun in the hand of a youngster beset by his own trials and tribulations can be a tool to end it all…as in the cases of the Newtown, Connecticut and Umpqua,Oregon shooters.
California just adopted the “right to die” law allowing assisted suicide for terminally ill patients. It is only the 5th state to enact this law. A testament to the fact that lawmakers, all right-thinking adults politically appointed to make decisions for their constituency, have pondered long and hard whether or not to allow suicide under any circumstance.
Why then would a parent put a gun in the hands of a youngster who, at times, struggles with life? The responsibility if he takes his own life and the lives of others must be shared by those making guns accessible to him…
…including those who love him.
………hugmamma.
hugmamma's MIND, BODY and SOUL 
When he was in high school, my son told me that anyone could acquire a gun from a seller easily. They are most likely stolen guns. The last gunman in Oregon had legally bought some of the guns. The fact my son knew this shows how young people are famliiar with these facts even if they don’t do these things themselves. Word gets around. That’s how easy it is to get one or more guns in the U.S. if someone wants them. A license or check is not even necessary. That’s what we’re up against in the U.S.
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Money can buy anything…and we are the richest country in the world. In the end, money really can be the root of all evil. We have to work extra hard against that temptation…or else we should give most of our money to countries in need and live simpler, less materialistic lives.
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Well said, and so true
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Wish there wasn’t the need to write such things…
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thank you so much for this write up
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Thank you for the comment. This is something I think about often…parents are the primary influence, whether or not they are physically present in their child’s lives. My dad died when I was one, but I think I missed him nonetheless. In fact, he has probably impacted my relationships with boyfriends and my husband more than I could ever imagine. The fact that my mom was widowed with 9 children and never remarried also took its toll on my life and those of my siblings. So the subject of parents affecting children shadows my life and that of my daughter, and probably her children as well.
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Really wonder when this issue will be addressed. How many more killings will it take?
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These victims have become statistics in the news…and their deaths at the hand of crazed shooters are falling upon deaf ears. Protecting their second amendment rights supersedes all else, including others lives. Sad fact.
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