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Spring in Colorado is usually my favorite. I love the rain. The green. The flowers. The sticky seedlings. Gardens. Even the inevitable Spring snow--heavy and wet. This Spring has brought with it some really terrible days, however. And not just terrible for me. Terrible for us all.

You may have heard that the entire Denver Metro area schools shut down. So many students stayed home one day due to a threat--a woman, believed to be obsessed with the Columbine massacre that happened twenty years ago, came to Denver, bought a gun and disappeared into the foothills. Unsure where to find her, every district, including the one my children attend, shut down until the threat could be eradicated. Since then, school after school after school after school has experienced a threat of one kind or another until the worst happened, and one student died while lunging for the gunmen, allowing his fellow students to get to safety. Eight were injured. Too many babies were terrified.

And the world needs answers. Answers as to why this continues to happen. Answers as to how we fix it. Answers as to how we keep sending our kids out into the world when the world is so frightening. I am a member of a Mom's group on Facebook, and I am very proud of this group. The women lift one another up. They support and offer advice when asked. They offer a safe space for perfect strangers to vent, share, ask for help, and cry. In the last few days, I have watched these brave, strong mamma's crumble. They question how they can send their kids to school. They wonder who has the answers. They argue about gun control, mental health, and parenting. Things are falling apart with no sign of stopping. The world is a hard place. There are things we cannot control, and my heart is heavy. Heavy as I contemplate how to help and what can be done. And I return to the same place every time: home.

"Parents, whatever you are doing, return home." (Cook, Gene L. "Home and Family: A Divine Eternal Pattern" Ensign May 1984)

It is so important for our kids to have a safe and stable home. It is our job, as a mother and/or father, to create a safe place for our kids. A place where they feel accepted. A place they can return to no matter what. A place their friends are welcome. A place their friend's parents are welcome. It is important to know your kid's friends. And their parents. It is important to know where your kids go. It is essential to have dinner together whenever possible. It is important to have family time. Game nights. Movie nights. Hard and awkward conversations need to take place over and over and over again. Our kids need to know they are loved and accepted. Boys and girls alike need to be taught and shown how to express their feelings and know that their feelings are valid and important. More than knowing that bullying is wrong, our kids need strong examples of what it means to be a friend.

Tragedies strike and people rush to hug their babies a little tighter for a few days, but please don't stop. Be an example. Be nosy. Be a strong, positive influence. I promise your kids will hate you, but someday they will thank you.