Understanding Newtown: A Mother’s Hope

No one can speak with the force of a mother who has lost her child. Veronique Pozner’s son, Noah, was one of the twenty-six killed in the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. Here are her words that express the joy, sorrow, and glorious hope of heaven: The sky is crying, and the flags are at half-mast. It is a sad, sad day. But it is also your day, Noah, my little man. I will miss your forceful and purposeful little steps stomping through our house. I will miss your perpetual smile, the twinkle in your dark blue eyes, framed by eyelashes that would be the envy of any lady in this room. Most of all, I will miss your visions of your future. You wanted to be a doctor, a soldier, a taco factory manager. It was your favorite food, and no doubt you wanted to ensure that the world kept producing tacos. You were a little boy whose life force had all the gravitational pull of a celestial body. You were light and love, mischief and pranks. You adored your family with every fiber of your 6-year-old being. We are all of us elevated in our humanity by having known you. A little maverick, who didn’t always want to do his schoolwork or clean up his toys, when practicing his ninja moves or Super Mario on the Wii seemed far more important. Noah, you will not pass through this way again. I can only believe that you were planted on Earth to bloom in heaven. Take flight, my boy. Soar. You now have the wings you always wanted. Go to that peaceful valley that we will all one day come to know. I will join you someday. Not today. I still have lots of mommy love to give to Danielle, Michael, Sophia and Arielle. Until then, your melody will linger in our hearts forever. Momma loves you, little man. One day prior to Veronique’s eulogy, Fr. Peter John Cameron, O.P., delivered a powerful homily at Saint Rose of Lima parish in Newtown, CT. He acknowledged that the gnawing grief is excruciatingly painful, and responded clearly to the suggestion that in the midst of such loss Christmas should be cancelled. Fr. Cameron’s response was resounding: “No: Christmas will not be cancelled! We need Christmas more than ever! Because the only way we can make sense of this horror is if God himself becomes flesh and comes to dwell among us as our Friend. We need the Presence of Jesus Christ in our midst to rescue us from this misery. For who has ever looked at us the way that that Man looks at us? Our Christmas mission is to give that same gaze of love to every person whom God places on our path. We can rescue others who are lost because Someone already came to us when we were lost and loved us back to life. To be a Catholic means to live our life as a sacrificial act of love: to seek out those who are so deeply wounded and share the divine love of Jesus Christ.”