Where do we go from here?

Yesterday, a horrific tragedy occurred. All over facebook, as well as other areas of the Internet, people were expressing their outrage, their shock, their grief.

Today, more statements and comments are coming out, inlcuding theories as to why it happened; from a lack of gun control to speculation as to the shooter's motivations and/or mental health.

I won't speak to the former, and as to the latter, I don't think we will ever, truly, know or understand. How could we? How does one understand such extreme violence? To come to an understanding means to come to some form of an agreement, and I don't think we want to agree with any of it.

In the end, it doesn't matter what his reasons were, good or bad. What matters is that there are 26 lives which have been lost, 20 of those children.

As it takes two people to create a baby, that means 40 parents whose arms will never again hug their child, nevermind grandparents, aunts, uncles ... or siblings.

I understand the desire to want to comprehend what happened, to put a cause and effect explanation to it so we can sort it out in our heads. I truly do.

But, at the end of the day, all the theories in the world will not help those aching hearts and arms hugs their children again.

I am particularly concerned about the "theories" that the shooter had autism or Asperger's, as if that would "explain everything". It doesn't. I know of several families in which there are children with these conditions, and while their lives are full of challenges, it doesn't mean their children are going to grab a gun and shoot up a schoolful of small children someday.

It's just too easy and convenient to put a label on someone who commits an act of such devastating violence. Easy, but not helpful.

My heart goes out to the families and community of those who were killed, children and adults alike.