WE'RE NOT SO DIFFERENT REALLY

The greatest gift I have ever been given is the right to be called a parent. It is a gift I have held close to my heart for over 21 years and one which I will never, ever stop being grateful for. I remember most parts of my daughters' childhoods- the births, the toilet training, the many firsts, the awards at

school, the dancing concerts, the squabbles with friends. The list is long and ingrained in my memory banks. Of course there are also events we could have done without. The falls off skateboards, the asthma years, the hearing impaired years, the hearing aids, the fight for support and recognition at school and of course Ashton's diagnosis with dural fistulas and consequently Cowden's syndrome. Life is never simple and you learn to take the good with the bad, adjust everything into some sort of workable programme and soldier on.

This morning I watched my 15 month old niece Isabella jump when a bird tweeted next to her. She was totally terrified and only calmed down because my sister in law and I kept making bird noises and laughing, showing her it wasn't a threat. It made me realise how we have the ability to create these tiny humans and are totally responsible for their care and learning. They are helpless without us.

The reason I am thinking about all this is because lately there have been an increasing number of stories in the media about young children. And I'm not talking about good stories. Deaths at the hands of parents, accidents, abductions and the heartbreaking pictures of a three year old refugee drowned while escaping from the horrors of his country, have been just too frequent.

It totally baffles me how anyone could hurt a child, worse still their own.
It totally baffles me how anyone could deny parents their child and the memories of his or her childhood.
It totally baffles me how people can be ok with not helping refugees, how they always have an argument to oppose anyone who has a heart and a conscience.

Children are so precious and it doesn't matter whether they are yours or someone else's, we all have a responsibility towards their safety, care and upbringing.

I remember praying to every saint I could remember to protect my daughter during surgery. I would have given anything and done anything  in exchange for her good health. It was a very intense feeling born out of love, fear and a desire to protect my child at all costs. How hard it must be for parents to put their children in a refugee boat knowing the risks involved. I wonder how often they promised God anything as long as their children were safe.

We're not so different really.
Till next time...xxx