REBECCA’S THOUGHTS SCARY NEWS
It’s to the point where I can’t watch the news anymore, but I can’t help BUT watch it either. Whether it’s North Korea, Twitter, mass shootings or just plain horribleness everyday — it seems like a train wreck. There is also the paradox of watching this terrifying insanity while my
REBECCA AUSTERER PT, DPT, GCS
young son is soundly sleeping on my lap, snuggled up with his stuffed turtle, dreaming of playgrounds and graham crackers. So how do we cope with this split image? How do you take your family to the mall for pictures with Santa and at the same time look for mad gunners? How do you feel safe about dropping kids off at school with people shooting through the windows? How do you feel safe at work? It makes me realize that our lives are fleeting, unpredictable, and attempting to be in control of anything is futile. I pet my son’s soft head gently and watch the carnage on the news. His breathing is light, rhythmic and relaxed — he hasn’t a care in the world. He doesn’t know who Donald Trump is or what an AR-15 is. He doesn’t care about the new tax bill, health care regulations or if we fix 2 or 4 schools and the implications on his city. And I don’t want him too, either. My 12-year-old lives with the anxiety from what she sees and hears and lacks the adult ability to process and have perspective. She’s nervous about events and crowds — at 12 she shouldn’t even be thinking that way. Honestly, the way I cope is to go to places when they are least crowded — I admit I do that. I won’t be at Walmart on Black Friday — not even for the people watching. I try to have faith in my community, and I spend as much time with my family and loved ones as possible.
I also take comfort in the fact that while things may seem bad now, there was always something. My mother told stories of hiding under her desk during air strike sirens, my daughter’s father’s family survived the holocaust, my cousin made it through desert storm and there was “Son of Sam” and the “Atlanta Child Murders.” These terrible things are not new and things are probably not worse. This too will pass. Life is trendy and cyclical, and when you have something or someone precious to you, suddenly you become more alert and acutely aware of danger. We always survive — we get through and most of the time things are never as bad as they seemed. At least that’s how it’s been for me. And for the time being I will turn the channel and enjoy my coffee while my son is quiet. I say “the son hasn’t come up yet” as a play on words, because when he’s up there is a new kind of carnage and raucous upon me.
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