Terrible Headlines in the News

Why do I read stories that I know terrify me? Just reading the headlines makes my heart start beating faster. Usually it’s stories that involve children and a parent’s worst nightmare. Last night it was reading about a three year old who was left in a car & died from the heat. He got out of his car seat but couldn’t get out of the vehicle. I imagined in my head him struggling to get out and wondered if he felt pain. Was he scared?

The mother forgot to drop him off at day care on the way to work. I could bash the mother but then I wonder, “What horrible things could I do in the right situation?” When my youngest was born (a surprise bonas) my next youngest was 17 months. I was so sleep deprived that I didn’t know which way was up. What could have happened at the wrong moment? I don’t know. I don’t know how a parent gets over something like this.

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