Every time a bell rings…

It took us two days to talk with our kids about Newport, Connecticut.  Two days of only watching TV when they were not. Two days of reading statements from the experts ranging from our local school district, from online new sources, and friends on Facebook.  But it wasn’t until I read what Kathryn at Daring Young Mom Posted Here, that we finally knew how we were going to talk to our kids about this. Thank you Kathryn.  You said what I needed to hear as well.

My mom happened to be with us when all of this happened and we were reminiscing about how in the olden days people hung mourning wreaths on their door when a loved one passed.  Now a dark and dreary wreath isn’t too helpful.  It might encapsulate the somber feelings and hopelessness that accompanies such tragedies, but I can’t live in that state of mind without sinking into depression.  Then this movie came to mind.

‘Every time a bell rings an angel gets their wings…’

And seeing how there are a couple dozen/plus new angels in heaven we thought we’d combine Kathryn’s thoughts with bells.

Kathryn mentioned that we can do something.  We can fight darkness and despair with light.  For every act of evil or frustration that threatens to pull us down we can counter this darkness with light and love.  The key word is ACT – Do Something.  Smile, lift those around you that are down, render service to those in need.  Might I add reach out with kindness to those who are alone or struggling.

Being Christmas time I happened to have enough bells laying around that I could make a little wreath.  I put a bell on a simple string representing each of the victims of this latest act of evil.  Sparkly silver for the kids and pink for the adult women.  I’m no great wreath maker.  I strung the bells on a string and then wrapped the string around a wire hoop.  Then, I wrapped the wire with ribbon to hide the string.  It’s simple, but now we can remember those newest angels.

Our family wrote down the names of all the victims and committed to do an act of service or reach out with love in honor of each of them.  And every time we do we will jingle our little bell wreath.  Yes, I know a bright jingle bell wreath can’t take away the hurt and heartbreak that comes with such tragedies.  But our family is choosing to make the world a better place in honor of those lives lost.  We are choosing to act with love and light.

Little Hope came home from her first day of school after the weekend and the first thing she did was reach up and ring the bells. 

“Mom, guess what, I choose to make the world better today.’ she told me as she jingled the bells.  ‘I was kind to a kid at school that was feeling bad.’  

Thank you Hope.