Such a sad story locally, a nine year old has died of a drug overdose. Somewhere else a ten year old has killed his 90 year old grand mother (and oh! is being tried as an adult!). I know these stories are sensational. But they are also profoundly sad.

I’m sure we’re going to find that there are underlying causes for each of these boys. I’m sure we’ll hear more about what set up these awful scenarios.

I’m not sure that we can claim that the sky is falling on the basis of these two kids, but we can use it as an opportunity to find what our children need. In the local case, it sounds more and more that what that child needed was not to be in the home of a predator. The second child, after reading just a bit, sounds like he has needed mental health support, which he didn’t get.

Tragedies do happen. Neither of these feel like accidents, however. In the first, even if the child ingested the drugs, what’s he doing getting childcare in the house of a convicted felon with drugs and guns lying around? I’m sure we’ll here all sorts of justification, but one bottom line reality may well be a lack of childcare. And accessible, affordable mental health care is what the second child needed and perhaps protection, who knows.

We honor these children by working to ensure that any one of a number of supports are in place: food, shelter, medical care — for them and for their family system.

Until every last little is tended and provided for, our children are not safe…

No answers here, lots of questions, very little Peace… and we’re the only Hope, although it’s not clear what next steps are… not the usual upbeat ending to an Ann Post… There’s mourning, but mourning is not enough…