When you send your children off to a sleepy little college town like Blacksburg, Va., nestled at the edge of the Shenandoah Valley, you assume they will be relatively safe. And then you find out that their school, Virginia Tech, has become the site of the worst shooting massacre in U.S. history. And you realize that no place is safe anymore.
As the parent of two children at what I had always considered an idyllic college, I was shocked last August to learn that the first day of classes had been canceled because an armed killer was loose on campus. I immediately called Brittany, a senior, and Ben, a freshman, to make sure they were safe.
That crisis passed and the kids settled into their academic year. I figured nothing that bizarre could ever happen again at a placid place like Virginia Tech.
And then today I heard those initial reports that made my blood run cold – another killer was on the loose in Blacksburg. Shots had been fired, but details were sketchy.
Again, I called Brittany and Ben. The town’s phone circuits were overloaded, but I eventually got through and learned they were fine.
Naturally, my initial reaction was profound relief. But as the details trickled in about the magnitude of the tragedy, my heart grew heavy with sorrow for the many parents who weren’t so lucky. I cannot possibly imagine the anguish of those families whose loved ones were guilty of nothing more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
My own family members have been calling and e-mailing from all over the nation. Everyone is relieved to hear that Brittany and Ben are all right.
But I know this awful day has cast a permanent shadow over their Virginia Tech experience. When Brittany graduates in a few weeks, she will forever be known as part of the class of 2007 – the year of the massacre. It will be like the 1970 class of Kent State, only with a much higher body count.
As I pray for the families of those who were killed or injured, I’m also sobered by what my children learned today. When Ben went to the dining hall this afternoon, police toting machine guns were patrolling the building.
The lesson was hard but clear: No place is safe anymore.
Read the complete coverage on the Monday Massacre at Virginia Tech
See the Tragedy Unfold in the Local Photo Blog
