Thursday morning’s news was filled with the tragic story of a young mom who slid into a retaining pond with five young children in the car. The story has grown worse over the last two days, as two of the children submerged in that icy water have died, one remains in very, very critical condition, while two are making signs of progress. I can only imagine the devastation this blended family is feeling. Hoping, waiting, praying for a child to recover from a critical illness changes the landscape of a heart. Grief over the loss of a child, rips the soul in two.

I used to drive past that retaining pond on a daily basis, and many times wondered why it was there. I often thought of the “what if’s” should a car slid into it on an icy morning or land there because of an accident. I had no idea it was so deep or so deadly. The highway department has good reasons and names it purpose as protecting our waters. But, one wonders if there couldn’t have been more protection to keep a car from going into the water.

I think of children submerged in icy waters, a young family trying hard to make life better for themselves. A new job that led a mom to drop her boyfriend off at work early in the morning, on the way to daycare, school and her new job. A family trying so hard in a society where the poor too often carry the weight of their poverty. All the while leading quietly heroic lives.