In the past, when things of great horror or tragedy occurred, children could be shielded from them. Whatever they didn't know couldn't hurt them And, in the past, it was easy to keep them from knowing.
"Go to your room!"
"Go outside and play!"
Even as I type this, I'm thinking of my own childhood. I can recall a situation along these lines when the Delta Force helicopters crashed in the Iranian desert in 1980. The television news was about to show images when the order - from a parent or an aunt, I can't quite recall - came.
"You kids go outside!"
But what do you do when you can't send the kids outside?
The attached article has a variety of information regarding kids' perspectives on the situation, ways to share with them information about what is going on, potential mental and emotional impacts we may not be considering, ways to help them process, and what that processing might look like.
Take a look.
There are times when we can, and should, shield our kids from the harsh realities of the world around them. This is not one of those times. It is not possible. Trying to is the equivalent of the wizard asking us to ignore the man behind the curtain. And if handled well, this is an opportunity to plant the seeds of resiliency and resolve.
Think about it.
Pastor Jason