shock.

I recently returned to my old job–office work at a nursing and rehab center–in the west suburbs of Chicago. Being gone for close to five months, drastic changes have ensued. Staffing, new ownership, frugal practices, and much more. Many people whom I previously worked with have moved on.

The other day, I read an article on the Chicago Tribune online website. “1 of 2 brother dies: Dad to be charged, prosecutors says” the headline read. Upon scanning the article, shock and awe overcame me. I cannot understand why any parent would douse their own children in gasoline and burn them alive–sadistic indeed. For the mother of these children, how does she feel?

As I connected with a few old friends at work, I inquired about one particular woman who I often spoke with. My friend mentioned that she left about two months ago after a family incident. Upon further elaboration I connected the dots. It struck me that the article I read was in fact a reality for this woman. To have your own husband set afire onto your own children is something no one would ever in their life imagine. I cannot help but feel pain and sympathy for her. To her loss, to her devastation, my condolences.

This particular incident, though, highlights one of many of the issues existing in the U.S. today–violence. We have murders, rapes, racial hatred, brother killing brother. How many crimes are there a year in Chicago alone? Throughout all my travels, I have come to sense the peacefulness of other countries. Two years ago in Toronto, watching the evening news, the breaking news story spoke of a bank robbery. In the States, murders, violent crimes. Walking in particular areas at night in the States can be dangerous, but in the six months I spent in Viet Nam, not once was there any sort of eminent danger, besides that of possibly falling off the motorbike and splitting your head in two. How disheartening it is to witness one’s own country plagued with such nefariousness.

Hac.