Worst Case Scenario

This morning I walked Isaiah to Loren Miller Park for his first day of preschool. On our way across the basketball court we stopped to chat with our friend Sergio. As we neared the playground Isaiah's classmate Sirena called out his name excitedly. After some initial hesitancy he settled back into the classroom routine, and reconnected with his old buddies in that awkward, three-year-old way of his. Our boy even shared a bag of Cheetos with his former nemesis, a boy who incurred his wrath last spring by calling him "small." It looked like a promising start.

But sometime around 8pm tonight we heard a series of gunshots coming from the park, followed by helicopters. Jordan overheard our housemates talking and asked me, "Mommy, what's a drive-by?" Without really answering his question, I let him conclude that it had to do with running a stoplight. It turned out the incident was not a drive-by, by any definition. A friend of ours witnessed the whole thing. A man on foot had pointed a gun into the park and started firing at random, roughly twelve shots. A small group of families and soccer players were there, but we're pretty sure no one was injured. Miraculously. I called Sirena's mom whose house faces into the park. She was shaken up, but calm. And relieved that her daughter went to bed early so she didn't have to explain.

I have played with each of my kids at this park since they were babies. It's been a place for playdates, birthday parties and church outreach events. Jordan learned to ride his bike there. And now Isaiah spends three mornings a week in the park's preschool. My biggest concerns are usually the lack of shade and how long Isaiah will insist on me playing the troll under the playstructure bridge. But I am also always on the lookout for trouble in this place, and I don't like babysitters to take the kids there without me. Because every so often something crazy happens.

Please pray for the peace of God to cover this plot of land. Pray that violence would be pushed back and families would play together in safety. And thank God with us for his protection this evening.

I will say to the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust." Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge. Psalm 91: 2-4

Isaiah's shows Abi just how good the preschool corndogs are.