When I went out to Jonesboro, Arkansas and Springfield, Oregon, the sites of school shootings, my new awareness caused me to look for violent homes there, too. I never really found out what went on, possibly because violence is usually a family secret. That place of fear is in every one of the United States. It is the place where, without warning, loved onesparents and mates and even childrencan turn into monsters. The lessons from a few words and pictures are not easy ones to face, but they are important.
Every child counts.
Every act has consequences. A slap at the wrong time can harm. A word at the right time can help. Children grow up. The slaps and the words will echo in the world we have to live in.