I don't feel like blogging about beauty tonight because I sit here in tears. Our community and state has been rocked to it's core this past week. I'm hoping by blogging about what's on my mind that it can help me feel better. I hope this not to be a depressing post, but a post to heighten awareness on two separate and totally unrelated issues- all leading to one final outcome.
On Monday of this week a lone gunman walked up to his ex-girlfriend and mother of his children while she took a break outside of her work and shot her point blank in the chest injuring her critically. He also shot the friend and coworker she was sitting with numerous times, killing her. He proceeded to shoot the window out of one side of the building and made his way down hallways, shooting while he walked, killing 1 other person and then himself. He injured 4 others on his rampage. A total of 25 shot were fired, and he reloaded the gun before walking in the building. As of right now, they say this was a domestic abuse/custody battle over two five year old twin boys. This man was not the typical "monster killer" type. According to neighbors and former coworkers, he was a hard worker, he was two courses away from a Masters degree, a good father, and was always calm and quiet. The ex girlfriend (who survived luckily for her children) did speak with coworkers about being afraid of this man. But as of Monday, she apparently had not voiced this loud enough. As with millions of women not just in America, but everywhere, domestic violence is a real and dangerous thing and many women are afraid for their lives, they just don't know how to say it or who to tell. They are trapped or feel guilty, in love, obligated, manipulated, whatever the case, they fear for themselves. If you know someone who is in a violent relationship, PLEASE help this person, please talk with her (or him) about getting help, or seeking counseling. I've been in an abusive relationship and though dreadfully hard to get out of and move away from, I did succeed and my life is 100% better for doing so.
Now flash forward to today, 2 days after the terrible EmCore tragedy. While our community is catching it's breath from those events, we hear on the news this afternoon that a mother left her 2 year old daughter locked in a van for 2 1/2 hours while she and her 4 year old child went to a meeting inside a building. The baby was left in the car from 9:30 am to 12:15 pm. The van was not running and it was approaching 100+ degree weather. All the windows were up. This baby is now gone. forever. :( This story rips my heart completely out and I'm so very upset over this. There are just so many fucking things wrong with this that I don't even know where to begin. What would compel a mother to leave her CHILD, wait. rewind her BABY in a car for 2 minutes alone, let alone 2 hours in the scorching heat? I can't even get into what I'm really feeling about this, because I'd lose tons of readers. Let's just say if I had seen this women in the parking lot of that building, I would have been hauled off to jail. I am SO sick of people abusing children..and it's only getting worse. If you can not care for your child, seek help, drop them off a fucking police station. Do something! But do not take the life of an innocent child! I can plead, I know. I can cry, I know. I know it doesn't change anything that's happened, it doesn't magically "make" people better parents. All I can do is squeeze my children tight and hope I raise them to squeeze their children tight, with love.
I'm sorry if this post is down tonight. I am just sick over this whole week and I'm looking forward to the weekend already. Too bad I'm not expecting any fun packages with sparkley eyeshadow this week to lift my spirits. LOL!!
Those of your with a spouse, significant other, someone you love, go give that person a kiss and tell them you love them with all of your heart. Those with children do the same. Life is short people, let's live it as best as we can. Hold your loved ones tight because who knows what tomorrow may bring.
Posts
Life is so precious... And it can be gone in an instant. I'm so sorry to hear both these stories- both incidents unavoidable.
ReplyDeleteWe had an 18 year old boy killed here in my town today, and another 18 year old boy in critical condition because of the accident. There were 4 people in the vehicle- the driver was arrested and charged today and arraigned in court and can face up to 14 years for this. We don't know why yet.
There was also a 15 year old kid in the car that was ok. It's just so sad that these things require just a little common sense in order to be avoided... It's so disturbing to see what some seemingly "normal" people are capable of doing.
My heart goes out to you, and I'll be keeping both of those families in my thoughts as well.
It has definitely been a hard week for the people of Albuquerque. Both situations could have been avoided. I feel for the woman who will have to live with the scar and pain of being shot by someone she loved and be reminded of him every day she looks at her boys. My heart aches for the sibling of the little girl who died in the car - NOT the mom. How in this world do you take 1 kid inside with you and "forget" the other in the car?! How did people not see this kid sitting alone in the car? This makes me so very sad. As soon as I finish posting, I'm going to go give my boys a hug and a kiss because they mean more to me than they will ever know.
ReplyDeleteOh my! I'll say a pray tonight, this is a sad situation :(
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize you were in ABQ- it's a small world.
ReplyDeleteIt's been a sad week, and I'm heartbroken over it. The loss of life is devastating. When I first heard about the child, I was sickened. It's so hot outside, how could you leave your child in the car? The situation could have been avoided so easily.
We had similar shooting in the shopping centre where I work here in Finland last new year's eve. Luckily I wasn't working then but the shooter lived pretty much across the road from me. Doesn't make it any easier that one person I know knew the shooter and his kids. He shot his ex-gf and some of her co-workers before shooting himself at his own home.
ReplyDeleteThere are too many children suffering from stupid parents like after children have fall asleep parents go out to bars and then children wake up and leave the flat and wonder around the city in a nightgown. This has happened in winters too when it's -20 here. I think there was also similar incident where a kid died to a really hot car some time ago.
There's no excuse ever to "forgetting" your child to a hot car, no matter what happens.
Hopefully your weekend will be better.
Do you really think you'd loose readers over that? I don't think so as most of us are horrified over how carelesss people treat their own and others' lives.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe in "This man was not the typical "monster killer" type." that people keep on saying to themselves like some mantra to keep sane thinking that the violent ones are not like us. It's just that we haven't seen that side of someone yet. This woman apparently did but nobody believed her because the stereotype of a violent husband is that of a poor, alcoholic blue-collar man. The same stereotype states that it's always a man but it's not that uncommon (anymore) that the abuser is a woman. My mom was and we keep telling everybody about it, but nobody listened. She ended up killing her husband.
People need to wake up, look and listen.
As far as the baby goes, I think that mother must have some serious issues and she needs help. Everybody knows how hot a car gets and everybody has been phanting their lungs out after getting into a hot car on a hot summersday, so she knew. We all know. The question is why she separated the kids.....and how does that 4-year old feel today? What has she already been through if she has a parent as negligent like that?
:'( There's been some pretty horrific shootings this side of the pond in the last couple of weeks, too. It's a sad world.
ReplyDeleteOh god how horrifying! I'm so sorry to hear about this, i just cannot understand how people can be so... evil for lack of a better word.
ReplyDeleteI don't think you'd lose readers, and even if any left, well, they'd be jackasses. Thank you for posting this, because it needs to be heard. And more people need to use common sense, love each other, and live as if life is precious, because it is, and it's short.
ReplyDeleteIt's very sad to hear about this. Although it's more common than we realize. I think our lives become harder and more stressful and some people's minds begin to crumble under the pressure and end up doing things they normally wouldn't. I just wish that people would get the help they need when they notice they are not OK. I also wish people would help when they see the signs in others. Most people ignore the signs and don't do anything until it's too late.
ReplyDeleteWe need to open our eyes and pay more attention to what is around us. Such tragedies can be avoided if we do that.
Thank you for posting this. It is sad but it should help raise awareness and should help us realize that our problems at the moment, aren't so bad. My heart goes out to the people affected by these events.
Sickening. Wendi, I really don't think you'd lose followers because you'd be saying what we all think. These parents are MONSTERS!!! People need to over-react rather than turn a blind eye to the warning signs.
ReplyDeleteSchmut is right; there isn't a 'stereo-type' of these horrid people.