April 20

From the window in this very room in which I sit, I can see the Columbine Memorial… Well, the hill that it was built on and part of the fence that encloses it. On this day 19 years ago one of the worst tragedies in American history occurred as two young men “made a statement.” Since then, many others have copied them by entering schools and killing our children.
Today there will be a ceremony on top of that lonely hill and we will remember exactly where we were when we heard the news.
I was 700 miles north of here, carrying on with my business in North Dakota, with absolutely no idea that I’d be within sight of the actual scene in a few years. Nor did I realize that both my grandsons would attend and graduate from Columbine High School in the years to come. As grandparents, we attended many functions there over those years.
I will never forget the first time I walked in to the building. I was overcome with the same weird feeling I got when I visited the “grassy knoll” in Dallas. I got to where I could walk in, though, and accept the feelings, and go about enjoying a concert or ceremony and cheer for the wrestling team… but never without a catch in my breath as a ghost of a memory flashed deep down.
May God rest the souls of the victims and may we always remember them, even as they are used for political purposes…