49 children were murdered in a night club in Orlando this week.
49 sons and daughters, carried in the swollen bellies of mothers who waited breathlessly for them to arrive.
49 nurseries prepared with brightly colored walls and soft, and furry animals just waiting to welcome them home.
49 smooth, helpless, perfect bundles, cradled in the crook of the arms of proud, nervous parents and loving siblings and beaming grandparents.
49 middle of the night cries, rushed to by sleepless caregivers whose very voices quieted the fear.
49 sweet-smelling heads with swirls of fuzzy hair spirals.
49 pairs of doughy hands, pulling themselves up onto end tables, and one moment pushing away and reaching toward outstretched arms.
49 pairs of wobbly legs begin to find their strength.
49 first words, greeted with wild exuberance by tearful, applauding witnesses.
49 first days of school, with new lunch boxes and butterflied tummies and dreams of what will be.
A candlelight vigil in Orlando. Image supplied.
49 gloriously off-key first grade recitals.
49 paper mache volcanos.
49 early morning snuggles.
49 toothless, jack-o-lantern smiles.
49 wide-eyed mortals realizing they are superheroes.
Top Comments
I feel for the loss of these people - it is tragic. But I'm finding it hard to feel sympathy for America because they are the ones who continually refuse gun control, who allow the NRA such power over the legislature and who have allowed personal autonomy to be conflated with the right of anyone to bear any arms for any reason whatsoever.
This is unnecessary. We do not need to see these victims as children to have empathy or understanding. Like others have said: Sandy Hook actually involved children. And nothing was done. I actually find it in poor taste to reduce these people to infants to evoke compassion. Most humans are caring.