Today there is a story in the news about a terrible boating accident where 3 children were killed on Long Island.  It got me to thinking how fragile life is and how painful it will be for their families to go on without them in their lives.

Then I thought about the terrible wars and famines and all of the other tragedies brought upon children all over the world every single day.  Their families will miss their smiles, their laughs, the joy they bring to their families and communities.  Their deaths will change everybody around them for years or perhaps a lifetime to come.  Every single human being leaves a footprint behind when they pass on.

Every life is precious.  We can learn lessons from everyone.  It is in our best interest to think about the children in other countries that are not so privileged and not on the evening news.  If a bomb drops in a town where casualties are caused does not that flame the fires of hatred and injustice no matter where that child lives.  It’s collateral damage on a cosmic scale.  It is perhaps robbing the world of another artist, another poet, another world leader.

Children are our future and if they are forgotten what does that say about us and our priorities?  Because a child is born in Africa and dies from starvation doesn’t it indirectly affect the children here in the United States.  If a child is gunned down in Chicago doesn’t that one death leave to a shift in our morals and psyche.  Innocence is lost every day all over the globe needlessly.  The death of innocence should show us how fragile and beautiful a young life can be.   A life filled with promise and an understanding of the future.

I know we can’t handle innocence lost on a singular level but perhaps wherever that innocence dies we should send a prayer and hope for a better tomorrow. We can hope for a better future and believe in the promise of a fruitful life everywhere.  We have to understand the peace and understanding of all that is lost every single day.

 

Go hug your children and give them an extra hug for that child somewhere who was lost somewhere else in the world.