During this time of unimaginable pain for the lives lost in Connecticut, I am comforted a little by Fred Rogers’ quote:
When I was a boy and would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
During tragedies like this, we notice all the helpers come out of the woodwork… police, fire fighters, pastors, and counselors. I read some excellent advice today on the facebook page for the Association for Play Therapy. If you are a mental health professional (play therapist, social worker, counselor, etc.), register with your local schools, public officials, and American Red Cross so that you can help your community in a time of need. Thank you to all the first responders, teachers, parents, religious leaders, and more, who are coming together to help our neighbors in need.
More inspirational quotes by Fred Rogers:
If only you could sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person
Confronting our feelings and giving them appropriate expression always takes strength, not weakness. It takes strength to acknowledge our anger, and sometimes more strength yet to curb the aggressive urges anger may bring and to channel them in nonviolent outlets. It takes strength to face our sadness and to grieve and to let our grief and our anger flow in tears when they need to. It takes strength to talk about our feelings and to reach out for help and comfort when we need it.
We all have different gifts and different ways of saying to the world who we are. The world needs a sense of worth, and it will achieve it only by its people feeling they are worth while.
