How can we be salt and light in a world filled with tragedy?
In the 911 call recording, you can hear Tiffany trying to keep it together. Behind her, children are crying. She shushes them repeatedly, trying to keep her own panicked breathing under control. She’s insisting that she hears gunshots. In the background, sirens wail.
It could seem plausible that anthropologists 50 years from now might look back at the odd belief that having a grand celebration one night might bring a new life and happiness to individuals that it was unattainable to the previous year. Their conclusion would be that: this magical thinking was predominant across social, ethnic, gender, and religious traditions, causing much grief and pain as those grandiose plans most always failed; and that somehow by making special goals, they could radically change their life.