Muted Emotions

Sandy Hook School in Newtown, CT

I woke up this morning and the emotional enormity of what happened in Newtown, Connecticut finally hit me - 24 hours after the event.

President Barack Obama wipes tears

from his eyes while addressing the

nation following the Newtown, CT

school shooting on December 14, 2012.

Despite having watched a great deal of the coverage and watching President Barack Obama deliver emotional remarks from the White House while wiping tears from his eyes and fighting to control his emotions, my emotions didn't fully manifest themselves until this morning.  This morning, when I turned on follow-up coverage and listened to the latest information and saw many of the same photos from the day before and found myself doing, a day later, what the president of the United States did at the White House. I wiped quiet tears from my eyes.

Random Generosity

While at Office Depot this afternoon, I encountered a kindergarten teacher who was buying notebooks for her class. She was getting 10 standard composition books and having them cut in half for her young students. As she was getting ready to pay, I said, "I will take care of it." The joyful surprise on her face was all the thanks I needed.

Teachers are under-appreciated, underpaid and under-supported, in my opinion. My late father was an educator and in his honor, I was happy to pick up this teacher's tab. I encourage others to do the same.