The Heaviest Newspaper

Yesterday, our famous hubster, wasn't feeling so well. So, he stopped on the way home to get some ice cream for us to 'cheer' with. Then, he made the two of us a cup of coffee, handed me the ice cream and a newspaper, and we deemed this to be a 'night of rest'. He needed to talk about work, and I don't mind listening while eating ice cream. Usually, I would love to read the paper at the same time. See, I'm a little high strung in the type a personality range so, sometimes I need a paper, ice cream, and a conversation so that I don't focus solely on one and over-react. Work is ever more stressful for hubster and I am prone to worrying. None of this was the case as the headlines sunk my heart. I won't repeat it, go here to hear the sad news of another helpless CHILD being harmed or murdered by another sick adult. In addtion, on the same page, an article about a man who was apprehended while trying to lure an 8 yr old girl from a local wal=mart who hung himself in prison, side by side with an article about another teenage girl who was found in a field, murdered. Don't bother trying my method of determined ignorance and turning to page 2, where you will find an article about a 19 yr. old mother trying to sell her newborn baby for 2700.00 to 'get her boyfriend out of jail' and, lastly, the kick to end all operations of your stomach, the mother who killed her month old child by microwave - next to the article about the teen being murdered in 'boot camp'. I put the paper down, listened to hubster and talked about the work place politicking, and tried to stop shaking.

Did I ever tell you how much my kids LOVE to read the newspaper? Not just the comics, horoscopes, word puzzles, etc. They love to read the paper. I barely get a chance to be the first reader. The paper usually comes to me all in shambles and half-packed back into its original bundle. For all the good it did me to be the first reader, I walked out of the room to gather ice cream bowls and heard papers rustling. Light bulb, better late than never - they shouldn't see all that-too late. It was a somber night. How do you help kids understand these terrible things? You talk to them about it. You cry about it with them, you listen to their fears, their pain, their anger at a world that can be so unfair - and then you help them do something about it - to heal (a little) that space for both them(and you) and all that your comfort can reach. Kids remind us adults that the processing of the terrible news is not enough. That excess energy has to go somewhere and it is up to those of us who are not in the terrible spaces to shine some light for those who are to find the way out.

We are all busy. We are all swamped. I shold have shorn two bunnies, spent more time in the barn, picked up my dye stuffs in the yard, cleaned the kitchen, and pulled off some amazing motherly feats today. Instead, I called the local charity that supports the battered women's shelters in our area and here's what we came up with. Hats, mittens, and scarves for kids of all ages and sizes are desperately needed for both the shelter arrivals and those in 'transitional' housing. You may note that the hat, etc. drives are not unusual - and neither are charitable knitters. Rabbitch has been working her tush off to get hats and blankets for the homeless. Wendy is working hard for the Heifer Project. Countless others (feel free to comment and leave your site as I will be listing charitable events in the sidebar!) are making stitches on account of lending a helping hand all the time. I used to volunteer all the time, my ability to do so is (temporarily meaning they will grow up sometime and I will have to find things to do while I worry about them loose on the world at large)very limited. Plus, I kinda took it to the extreme. Was it the counseling pregnant teens combined with being an 'on call' transport for the Battered Women's shelter 15 yrs. ago that burned me out? Maybe it was the time when thing 1 was a toddler and I was volunteer counselling on the child abuse hotline - being a ear and kind word of alternative for parents who had abused their children and were in the process of being re-united. What a challenge. There were many happy endings - families that really just needed less stress, more tools to deal with behavior issues, and the comfort of knowing they were not alone to be good, gentle parents. There were some painful stories - parents that would realize there was no way they could deal with the issues and seek help placing thier own kids (hard!) Thankfully,there were no 'tragedies' - cases that end in the most permanent way and leave the counsellor feeling like vile waste, while I was working there. Not something I want to be doing whilst trying to be the most patient of mothers alive. But, I sure can knit!

I'm asking you for a hat, a pair of mitts, a scarf, or more if you can. I'll be accepting items through mid-January. Now, if some smarter person would help me create a separate blog for this so everyone can sign up - I would be so grateful. Prizes? There will be many and, of course, donated prizes are welcome. The things 1, 2 and 3 and I will deliver the goods to Spruce Run in Bangor, Maine to be handed out where most needed. Spruce Run is a good place - helping victims of domestic violence get their lives back on track. Please, please, please - make something for a kid that needs a little sunshine in their life.

Now, I'm off to set the yarn I spun this wee early a.m. whenst I was unable to sleep until I found something we could do, and try to get a kindergarten version of that blog going. And to get a po box, and to have a stronger cup of coffee.