A year ago, girls, teenagers who wanted an education so they could look forward to a great future, were abducted from their school in Chibok, Nigeria. They were taken away, kidnapped and removed from their family, because they were guilty of having ambitions. All these girls had to defend themselves were books.
What’s left of this horror is parents. Mothers and fathers, grieving for a loss that can never be overcome, hurting from a pain that will never lessen, left to wonder why, and knowing that no answer will ever alleviate their sorrow. Because there is no justification.
A few months ago, Peshawar happened and with it, the world once again, lost its innocence. Over 150 kids massacred, because they were guilty of being the children of their parents. All these kids had to defend themselves were notepads.
What’s left of this horror is parents. Mothers and fathers, grieving for a loss that can never be overcome, hurting from a pain that will never lessen, left to wonder why, and knowing that no answer will alleviate their sorrow. Because there is no justification.
Last week, my home country, France, was the theatre of repeated terrorist attacks. People were massacred because they went to work that day, or decided to do their grocery shopping. A brutal attack, with one side holding weapons, the other pencils.
And the violence continued with news of over 2000 killed in Baga, Nigeria.
What’s left of this horror is parents. Mothers, fathers, grieving for a loss that can never be overcome, hurting from a pain that will never lessen, left to wonder why, and knowing that no answer will ever alleviate their sorrow. Because there is no justification.
Mothers, fathers of this world, our families are being hurt beyond comprehension. Pencils are fighting bombs, words are matched with weapons. These violent attacks are not about gender, race, religion, background, or opinions. They are about pulverizing families. This is a call to unite. We all have a responsibility to do everything in our power to preserve our families and help others do the same.
We are all Chibok girls. We are all Peshawar. We are all Charlie.
How do we, global parents everywhere, teach our children to cherish and preserve their families? How do we unite to show them that violence is never the answer?
This is an original post to World Moms Blog by Nadege Nicoll. She was born in France but now lives permanently in New Jersey with her family. Nadege also writes a daily blog for moms who need to smile at everyday life. She can be found on Twitter, Facebook and her website www.nadegenicoll.com.
Image creation by author.
This is such a powerful post, worth spreading world wide! Thank you so much for writing this Nicole, it is beautiful, touching and very very true! Although we all wish it wasn’t necessary.
Thank you. It was very emotional to write. If we all teach our children to cherish, love and respect the family unit, maybe the world can regain a sense of unity, you know. But like you said, it’s sad to need to say something like that. The horror happening in Nigeria is just another example.
Very powerful Nadege. When we hear news like this, it is difficult to explain to my inquisitive elementary school age daughter what causes people to do such horrible things to innocent people. I just want to say, “Because they’re evil and crazy!” I like the approach of bringing it back to respecting the family unit. Thanks for sharing your perspective!
Thank you Eva. Our children are the adults of tomorrow. They learn from us. They must learn that family units must be preserved, protected and respected. Regardless of our differences, it is never acceptable to damage any family unit. Utopia, maybe, but if this post and all our comments can only change one person’s perspective, we would have done something good today.
I felt emotional reading this. I have been emotional ever since this happened. I am so glad to see the words we are Chibok girls and we are Peshawar next to we are Charlie, because I felt like the media had much more attention for Europe.
That image of weapons against pencils, books and notepads, so powerful.
Well done!
Thank you for your kind words, Mirjam. The sad thing is, as I was writing this post, more horrific scenes were unfolding in Nigeria.
This is so well written! I am really struggling still taking in the events your reference….. you have me thinking more clearly, more intentionally. Thank you for that.
Thanks for your kind comment, Tara.
Nadege, this sentiment is so beautifully & powerfully written. It’s very moving. I pray it moves readers to do something about it…be it at home as you suggested (with our children), or in the wider community.