Shawn RiceThe other night, my father and I were watching CNN. We were both interested in the ongoing process to catch Brian Nichols, the suspect in the courtroom shooting in Atlanta.
Whenever I hear stories like this one, I can never stop watching and wondering how these people’s minds can get so faded. Are they really that cold-hearted or do they have an underlying issue?
I have asked these kinds of questions while watching the news many times, especially when the news involves tragic shootings like this.
I also notice just how random locations of these tragedies can be: a courtroom in Atlanta, a high school in a town called Columbine and an entire region staying indoors because of a sniper.
The list goes on.
Families suffer and lose loved ones in many places. Hearing these stories over the years always made me feel lucky that nothing like this ever happened in Delaware County, at least in the years that I know of.
In a few weeks, my grandfather is going to be moving in with my parents and myself because he misses the area. Right now, he is living with my aunt and uncle in Brookfield, Wisconsin.
I’ve visited Brookfield before. It is an incredibly friendly, suburban town with one of the Great Lakes nearby. When I was there, I received a countless number of smiles and nods from strangers. More nods and smiles than I receive on a day here at home.
While I was watching the development on the Nichols story, there was a breaking news story. There had been another shooting. I heard that a man had gone to a church service and shot seven people then shot himself. The shooting was in Brookfield.
First I though, wow, Brookfield. Then I remember I heard the words “church service.” My grandfather is extremely religious. I immediately started to panic. Thankfully, I came to learn no members of my family were in danger. It was not the same church my grandfather attends. But for that few seconds it wasn’t a question of what if. It was the town my relatives lived. It sounded like something my relatives would attend. A nice suburban town.
Radnor is a nice suburban town.
Am I supposed to trust everyone here?
No matter how far or how close something happens, there are always “what ifs.”
Posted to the web by Shawn Rice
