I actually didn’t know if I was going to write this post or not. I hemmed and hawed and finally decided to write it out because keeping it inside helps no one, myself included.
By now you all have heard the events that transpired in Las Vegas this past Sunday night. As a nation, we are still reeling from the tragedy and the news continues to bombard our psyches and our heart.
Well, for our family, Sunday night was a difficult one.
My husband went to Las Vegas Sunday evening for a business trip. He had meetings scheduled there for the next day. My daughter and I were home here in California.
And then I received a phone call, a phone call no one ever wants to get.
My husband called me and told me that there were shootings going on and that there was chaos and no one knew where the shots were coming from, and that him and his boss, were literally running for their lives.
I can’t even begin to describe my feelings in that moment. I am at home with my daughter, 7 months pregnant with our second daughter, and feeling like my world was starting to slip away from me.
To make matters worse, my husband didn’t have that much battery life in his phone so he had to call me in like, 30 second intervals. At one point, him and his boss were hiding in the bushes, not knowing where the shots were even coming from. There was panic and everyone was running and fleeing. A lady who was running in front of my husband tripped and fell, and then my husband tripped and fell over her. Everyone helped each other up, and everyone kept running.
I also was on the phone back and forth with my husband’s boss’s wife, because his boss lost his cell phone and had no way to get into contact with his wife. Since my husband’s cell phone battery was getting lower and lower, I ended up calling/texting her with updates.
Sometime in the wee hours of Monday morning, the Las Vegas police stated that there was only one gunman and that he was dead. I let my husband know, as I had been attached to my phone for all the latest updates.
At that point, him and his boss were able to make their way back to their hotel rooms without further incident.
Needless to say, I was very emotional and gave my husband the biggest hug I could when he came home Monday evening.
My story has a happy ending, but there are so many families hurting right now, that cannot say the same thing. My heart breaks for all the victims and their families.
I am not going to get super political here, but as a country we need to do better. WE NEED TO BE BETTER. These mass shootings have to STOP. We have to come together and pass better legislation.
This hit too close to home for me…
That is so scary Mackenzie and I’m so glad he is OK! I imagine there might still be some aftermath that he has to deal with from that experience. 🙁 I went to a candlelight vigil last night for two of the victims in Manhattan Beach. It was both a stunningly beautiful experience (so many good people coming together under the most beautiful sunset), and of course, heartbreaking, because that vigil did NOT, and should not happen.
Thanks Tonya, I am glad he is okay too. That is nice that there was a candlelight vigil for the two victims from Manhattan Beach. This is all just so sad and heartbreaking. It seems like everyone here in SoCal knew someone that was there or a friend of a friend was there.
Oh Mackenize. I cannot imagine how terrifying this was for you and your family. I am so, so, so happy that your husband is okay and back home, safe and sound. And my heart is so broken for all those people who did not make it back home. To those whose injuries, both physically and mentally, will take days, weeks, years and forever to recover from. It’s crazy that we have normalized mass shootings to the point where they have become a horrific tragedy that Americans simply accept as a way of life. It shouldn’t be this way.
Thank you Tanya. Yes, this whole thing was definitely hard for us but I am so thankful that my husband made it home safe and sound. But these mass shootings have to stop. When is enough, enough? 🙁
Oh my dear, dear friend!! I am SO thankful that your husband and his boss are okay. I cannot imagine how scary that must have been for all of you!! So many very sick, sick people in the world. May they all get the help they need before any other lives are shamelessly lost.
Thank you Laurie. It was definitely a scary situation. 🙁
Oh … What a horror that was even from a distance. To have had your husband running away from the gunshots is something I can’t even get my head around. I can’t begin to imagine what those hours were like for you. I am so, so glad that your story has a happy ending and that you and your husband are safe together again. But it does bring the reality of it home. People just like you did not have the same happy ending. Life is indeed short. And precious.
Thank you Ruth. It was definitely a hard thing to go through especially that I am pregnant and was trying my darndest to not freak out and work myself up into an early labor. I truly am thankful that the Lord watched over my husband that night.
I’m so relieved that your husband was ok after that, but my heart goes out to you. The first I heard of it was a text from my relative who was caught in the shooting as well and it was utterly terrifying. It’s true – we SHOULD be able to say that regardless of politics, these shootings have got to stop.
Thank you. I am glad my husband is safe and I am glad that your relative made it out safely. The laws do indeed need to be changed in our country. There has to be an end to this madness.