As reported in CNN tonight (click here to read the article), a tragic scene unfolded today as a lone gunman took several students hostage. After he had released all but two of the teenage girls, SWAT teams stormed the school to rescue them. The gunman, however, was too quick for them, and he was able to kill one of the hostages before killing himself.

As a human being hearing this story for the first time, I wonder what would have happened had they not stormed the school….

As a teacher, I view every student in a positive light. But I am also on edge in the classroom, from the beginning to the end of each class, simply because I know that these tragedies that have struck Colorado high schools (Columbine is just 40 miles away from today’s attack) can happen anywhere, at any time.

One of the stories that came out of today was that the gunman accidentally took one boy for hostage with the six girls. When told he could leave, be free, the boy turned and said, “I’d rather stay here with the girls and protect them.”

The gunman allegedly put the gun to the boy’s head and told him to leave for good. The boy had no choice, and he was soon off.

Today’s shooting brings to light my sub-conscious role as protector of the classroom at all times. I try to keep it concealed from them as much as possible, but I don’t want anything happening to my kids, not to mention the rest of the students at our high school. And so I keep these tragedies in the back of my mind and err on the side of caution whenever necessary.

As a teacher, it’s my responsibility to protect these students.

As a human being, it is my responsibility to love these individuals and allow them the chance to reach their potentials….whatever they may be.

Love to all,

Rus

I think that one of the greatest skills we can learn as writers is how to be good listeners.

In the last week alone, I have closed my mouth and opened my heart to hear more stories of love, tragedy, revenge, and sacrifice than any one human being can rightly claim to hear in a lifetime. The key for me has been simply listening without interrupting.

Talkers love to find good listeners, as most others are telling them to shut up or, at the very least, give it a break. But talkers have much to share, and when they are given space to really let go and dive into a subject that they’re passionate about–well, look out.

I write this not because I’m necessarily proud of my sudden ability to shut up; I write this because Nano is coming up, and I hope you might join us and write a book in the month of November. I’m going to be spending a great deal of time on this site writing about nano, how we prepare, what strategies are out there to do such a task, and tips and words of motivation that will keep all of us in a place where we can muster out just a few more strokes on the keyboard.

The stories I have heard are all gellin’ nicely for my story: a psychological thriller that is similar to my other works in this genre.

More on the story line later.

Who’s thinking about doing this? Nano’s great! You should consider joining us….Much fun, that’s for sure!

The phone calls have been heavy this morning, as friends and family members wake to the news that the Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, was killed early Monday by a sting ray. Normally, this would probably be like the death of any other celebrity, where we’re all in a bit of shock over the news, and we all feel a certain sense of loss for the tragedy.

But the calls have been from moms and dads of kids who have spent the past few years, much like ours, growing up with Australia’s own Wiggles, a wacky fab-four kind-of act that has replaced Barney and other such shows. Maybe three or four years ago, they did an hour-long special with Steve Irwin, and that video has been their favorite hands down. They know all the songs by heart, the dances, the narration by Irwin–they’ve taken to him as they have any other childhood icon.

So when the news spread early this morning, we all felt as if we had lost somebody more than just a regular celebrity.

And maybe we have. It’s hard enough for us as adults to cope with the shock of his death, but for the millions of children all over the world who have come to love Irwin for his entertaining antics with dangerous creatures, it will be even harder for them to comprehend how something like this could happen.

I nearly broke down this morning when I broke the news to my oldest daughter; it was as if I had to tell her that a family member had died.

To her as much as to us, maybe one has.

Washingtonpost.com has just reported that President Bush just landed in Iraq to meet newly named Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and discuss the next steps in the troubled, three-year-old war.

So here’s where I’ll take this:

Troubled president makes a surprise visit in country where no. 1 terrorist has just been killed.

Troubled president and administration stage his assassination to further his agenda and swirl contempt for Iraq and re-energize an ever-worsening, patriotic-limp nation.

(hey, even the prez can take one for the team, right?)

We annhilate Iraq, control the oil, and save the republican party, bush’s legacy, and our economic slide.

Sounds too good to pass up, doesn’t it?

Ah, yes. If only I were a techno-thriller writer. I’d have the next best-seller indeed…

Still….not a bad topic for a working draft this summer. The story begins as the last shot is fired, and the president and his team lay motionless as the helicopter’s blades whirl circles of dust around not-so-dead corpses….

Yes…I can see this one materializing quickly…