I grew up in Sandy Hook and went to the middle school and high school ('92)
there, but never had the honor of attending Sandy Hook Elementary School,
though my brother and sister did and I have been there many times. I just cannot
turn my mind off about the horror that unfolded – it has invaded every thought
that was directly affected.
At the same time, two other thoughts come – how would I possibly send
my own daughter back to a place that has been tainted with such horrible,
unspeakable, unconscionable evil, and how can we truly honor the memory of
those that have been lost? I propose that we tear down the school and build a park with a playground in its place.
I don’t believe there is any amount of renovation or spackle or new
walls that can erase (literally and figuratively) the evil that was done there.
It is a way of ensuring that evil does not win, a way to tell evil that it can
be overcome. That no matter how hard evil tries, the grounds of Sandy Hook
Elementary School will know happiness again, that we will never forget. Yes,
it’s extreme, but so was the evil that was done there. How better to cleanse a
place than to fill it with the laughter and pure joy of happy children playing
on a playground and the love of families taking their children to a park for a
Sunday picnic or an afternoon stroll?
It is the best way I can think of to truly honor the memories of those
tiny beautiful spirits and their teacher guardians we lost on Friday morning.
Reuben Randalot
Newtown Native
