Thursday, June 07, 2007

What I'll Do During My Summer Vacation

This is my last post for a while. Next week we're moving. For the first week or so after our move we won't have an internet connection. I plan to spend the time writing. When I'm not unpacking, of course.

I'll also read. While packing, I found several books I forgot I had. I'm looking forward to digging into them.

And I'll spend much of my time outside. I love the sunshine and the warmth. I intend to soak up as much as I can before heading into another (shorter because we're moving south) winter.

I'll see you again in early July. Enjoy.

Peace Out!

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Yearning for a Peaceful Society

Last Saturday, a young woman disappeared after a shopping trip. Today her body was found and identified.

This particular story hits home to me more than most of the others because I used to shop at that Target. I know the area where they found the body. We recently sold a home a few miles away.

I haven't talked with my friends yet, but I can imagine their reactions. Will they let their daughters go shopping alone? I doubt it. Not for a while.

We expect to be safe when we shop and go about our daily lives. We don't expect kidnapping and murder. Familiar places become haunted with the ghosts of deadly possibilities.

A few weeks ago, there was a shooting in Kansas City at a mall where I used to shop. Oddly, another Target store was involved. The perpetrator was a security guard who killed two at the mall, after killing an older woman and stealing her car.

We moved away from Kansas City three years ago, and in some ways I'm glad that I don't have to face these events on a personal level. But if not Kansas City, where? Crime rates are rising drastically in all major U.S. cities. My son's teacher has a nephew who was killed in St. Louis last week.

Read the papers. Check the websites. Some cities report shootings every day. There are also home break-ins, rapes, and robberies. I was a burglary victim last fall. Someone walked away with my laptop, my cell phone, and over $200 from my purse--money I had just made from selling some of my books. Two suspects were caught and there hasn't been any more trouble, but I never feel safe in this house. That's one reason I'll be very happy to move next week.

War overseas. Mayhem at home. Isn't it time we demanded an end to all the killing?

Isn't it time we demanded peace?

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Lazy Days of Summer

As of noon today, all of my kids are out of school for the summer. Now what?

This year won't be too much of a challenge for us, actually, in terms of keeping the kids busy. We're moving next week. Tomorrow, I've announced, we will all concentrate on finishing the packing. The biggest job is the room my two youngest share. They're old enough to manage. I have my own to-do list.

After we settle into our new home, though, I'll face some of the same challenges. How much computer time do I allow, and how do I make sure each of my three youngest gets his own fair share? How often will I tell them to go play outside? How many fights will I witness? (I don't get involved unless it's absolutely necessary. They usually work things out without me.)

Summer vacation is a great opportunity. Some parents send their kids to camp. Some line up lessons in music, language, or rocketry. There are so many opportunities to fill up those empty hours with constructive activities.

I treat my kids to the way I remember summers. Endless days for daydreaming, reading, and just hanging out. Time to explore, without an organized agenda. Opportunities to be with brothers and friends or just be alone. For the most part, my kids define their summers. My job is simply to guide them. And feed them, of course. Our grocery bill skyrockets during the summer.

I want my children to be peaceful. One way to do that, I think, is not to push them but to give them the room to live their lives. Summer is a great time to do just that.

Monday, June 04, 2007

Thought Crime

Have you ever thought of doing something wrong, maybe illegal? Maybe you even talked about it to your friends. Maybe they agreed. But you didn't do it. You just thought about it. Is that a crime?

We know of suspects who've been arrested for arranging to murder someone, but not until after the money had changed hands. At that point, the plot moved beyond thought into action.

But what if you just thought about it. Maybe it was a really bad idea. But it seemed good to you at the time. We're all human, aren't we?

I doubt you've been arrested just for thinking, or even discussing. Unless you're a Muslim.

Don't get me wrong. Talking about blowing up JFK is a really bad idea. Whoever came up with that plan should have had friends who'd talk him out of it and set him straight. You would do that for a friend, wouldn't you?

It was a bad idea. It was ill-conceived and ludicrous. But was it a crime?