Yesterday there was a tragedy in my neighborhood. A two-year-old little girl was sitting with her grandmother in front of a building when some bricks came loose from the building's window ledge and fell onto them. The grandmother was injured. The little girl suffered massive head injuries and died today.
The sidewalks around this corner building were closed off on both sides yesterday and my neighborhood was filled with news vans and police cars all day. New York is such a strange place because we are all packed in so tightly, traveling, walking, living together. Many of the buildings are old. Most of them are tall. When a brick falls here, it will likely hit someone.
This tragedy hits very close to home, because, it is close to home. This girl is two, and so is my girl. We walk by that spot as a family frequently. We walked by that spot one hour prior to this event happening yesterday.
I hugged Magpie extra tight last night and sang to her in the rocking chair longer than I usually do, "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine," at her request. She seemed to sense my slightly raw mood and turned my face with her little hands to look directly into hers, "I love you, Mama."
And I think she knows that she is deeply, deeply loved in return. I just wish I could be sure she was always protected. That nothing terrible could happen. And yet, of course it can. Random, terrible things sometimes happen, a part of life that has to be accepted. You do what you can and you let the rest go. I know this, and yet, ugh.
I've spent the past day sending all of my thoughts to that mom and dad, and that grandmother, who was injured and will survive but was unable to save her granddaughter. I just can't even imagine.
Mo
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The sidewalks around this corner building were closed off on both sides yesterday and my neighborhood was filled with news vans and police cars all day. New York is such a strange place because we are all packed in so tightly, traveling, walking, living together. Many of the buildings are old. Most of them are tall. When a brick falls here, it will likely hit someone.
This tragedy hits very close to home, because, it is close to home. This girl is two, and so is my girl. We walk by that spot as a family frequently. We walked by that spot one hour prior to this event happening yesterday.
I hugged Magpie extra tight last night and sang to her in the rocking chair longer than I usually do, "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine," at her request. She seemed to sense my slightly raw mood and turned my face with her little hands to look directly into hers, "I love you, Mama."
And I think she knows that she is deeply, deeply loved in return. I just wish I could be sure she was always protected. That nothing terrible could happen. And yet, of course it can. Random, terrible things sometimes happen, a part of life that has to be accepted. You do what you can and you let the rest go. I know this, and yet, ugh.
I've spent the past day sending all of my thoughts to that mom and dad, and that grandmother, who was injured and will survive but was unable to save her granddaughter. I just can't even imagine.
Mo
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That is terrifying, especially hold life can change, without warning, in a second. Sending good thoughts to the family.
ReplyDeleteThat is so horrible, being so close and for that poor unsuspecting family!
DeleteSo terrible. A few years ago an acquaintance's boy about a year older than S fell from a balcony (he lived), but every time I hear of these random accidents, I just want to keep them locked up inside. But we always go out again. Prayers for the family.
ReplyDeleteThat's so scary! My heart breaks for that family.
ReplyDeleteMo, please try to remember that as close as this incident was to your home, statistically it is still a very, very rare occurrence. Statistically, the most dangerous place for a child is in a car, yet most of us don't think twice about buckling our kids into their car seats. Just by virtue of living in a walkable city with lots of public transportation, Magpie is safer than most children.
Hugs to both of you!
Dora, you make me laugh, because you sound like a (good) CBT therapist! You are correct, and being very rational :) (as opposed to me coming from a completely emotional place about this). Excellent advice.
DeleteThanks! Being a mom means managing these fears. Let's just hope that skinned knees are the worst of their childhood injuries. xoxo
DeleteUgh. These things are so hard. (Stories about falling tree limbs are what do it to me. Maybe it's just the idea of something falling out of the sky...) Glad you are both safe, and so sorry for the family of this little girl. Can't even imagine the horror.
ReplyDeleteOhhh. I am so, so sorry for them. What a heart-wrenching loss for them. My healthy brother's death while jogging pretty much destroyed my head in the sand thinking that such things are so rare you don't have to worry. I try to carry on with acceptance or false sense of security or whatever you call it, but I'm keenly aware that time with those we love is very, very precious.
ReplyDeleteBeing a parent comes with a trade-off, you are forever vulnerable to a depth you never dreamed of. You're right, you are doing all you can.
ReplyDeleteAlso not far from my brother and his fiancee. They are getting married in June and plan to have kids right away and have 3-4 kids. They bought the apartment next to theirs and are going to join the apartments so there is room for lots of kids. As an aunt, I'm delighted at the prospect of lots of little ones but when I was in their place the other day I could see so many hazards. I raised my kids in the suburbs so it's a completely foreign concept to me to raise kids in the city. I can also see so many potential benefits in raising babies there. I guess there are risks wherever you live and we can only pray God's protection on our little ones.
ReplyDeleteThis was on the national news tonight. What a horrible, freakish accident. Poor Grandma will ask herself forever why she decided to sit there with the baby at that exact moment. How very beautiful that the family donated Greta's organs. The recipients' parents will forever treasure that family and their precious gift.
ReplyDeleteThis is heartbreaking. Life is so horribly random.
ReplyDeleteHow heartbreaking, many prayers for that family. I can't even imagine.
ReplyDeleteThis is so heartrending. I am a paranoid mom by nature. For example, there are coconut trees around, and I am nervous every time Gauri is under one. So many places I go, I often look up to see if there is anything I should be watching for. For all my paranoia though, if something awful were to happen, it would probably happen anyway. The majority of us are protected by luck, that fickle, fickle thing. When it goes.....there are no words.
ReplyDeleteThis aside....I emailed you a while ago. Check it out if you have not seen it already.
I saw this news and was so heartbroken by it. By how fragile it all is. It must have haunted you to have it take place in your neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteBut I am so happy for you with your relieving tests, and that after all there is still good news sometimes.
And FWIW, I think you should maybe try the IVF. If for nothing else, then for closure. That's what's making me think that surrogacy is actually an investment for me, either way. So I can just know for sure that I did it all.