In some of the Sandy Hook tragedy news coverage, you see men and women interviewed who have survived tragic deaths of their children through violence in a school shooting. You would never characterize these men and women as "getting over" the death of their children, but they have learned to "live around it."
And some are providing helpful wisdom for Sandy Hook parents now. Their grief did not destroy them.
In today's paper, there was a story about the school the Sandy Hook kids will return to in January. It will be in another, empty school but the children will return to classrooms that look similar to the ones they left. The story quoted Carolyn Mears, author of "Reclaiming School in the Aftermath of Trauma."
Her daughter survived the Columbine shooting in 1999. I'm sure the parents who have survived every parent's worst fear are helping out in ways big and small in Sandy Hook, in ways we will never hear about. One thing I know about survivors of great grief? They are unusually humble after being humbled by horror.
Spokesman-Review features writer Rebecca Nappi, along with writer Catherine Johnston of Olympia, Wash., discuss here issues facing aging boomers, seniors and those experiencing serious illness, dying, death and other forms of loss.
